


Family and Protection

by samanthaswishes



Series: Family and Protection [1]
Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: Abandonment Issues, Angst, Anxiety, Bullies, Dragons, Family, Family Feels, Father-Daughter Relationship, Feels, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Foster Care, Found Family, Hurt/Comfort, Magic, Mind Control, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Next Generation, Originally Posted on Wattpad, Orphanage, Orphans, Other, Post-Canon, Reunions, Self-Esteem Issues, Written in 2017
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:53:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 38,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25094167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samanthaswishes/pseuds/samanthaswishes
Summary: Giving up your children is never easy, but when a threat is made against Auradon and the VKs, Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos will do whatever it takes to keep their daughters safe. Brelyn, Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla have lived their lives not knowing who their parents are. When they get accepted into Auradon Prep, their lives practically turn upside down. What happens next? You'll just have to read to find out.NOTE: This story was written BEFORE Descendants 3, so any inconsistencies this story has in terms of the movies are due to the time of which this story was first published.Originally posted on Wattpad in 2017
Relationships: Ben & Original Female Character(s), Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants), Carlos & Original Female Character(s), Chad Charming/Audrey Rose, Doug & Original Female Character(s), Doug/Evie (Disney: Descendants), Evie & Original Female Character(s), Jane & Original Female Character(s), Jane/Carlos de Vil, Jay & Original Female Character(s), Jay/Li Lonnie, Lonnie & Original Female Character(s), Mal & Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character(s)/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Family and Protection [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1817428
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	1. Prologue

Auradon: The land of opportunity and happiness

Established by King Beast and Queen Belle. All the heroes of the land lived together in peace. In order to accomplish a new era of harmony, all the villains, their sidekicks, and anyone who pledged allegiance to the villains were booted off to a secluded island deemed the Isle of the Lost. To keep the villains in check, they were stripped of their magic, and a magical barrier was put in place to make sure nothing came out. Some of its inhabitants saw the island as a prison.

In the capital city of Auradon, a high school was established in an old castle known as Auradon Prep. It was a boarding school to train the next generation of heroes. The sons and daughters of all well-known heroes attended this school.

The children on the Isle, the descendants of the villains, lived on the prison-like island along with their parents. Some found it enjoyable and didn't care about anything else while others absolutely despised it. Little did they know, something would happen that would soon change the fate of the entire kingdom, including the Isle of the Lost.

Not long ago, King Ben, at the time Prince and the son of Belle and Beast, had sent out his first official proclamation. He wanted the children on the Isle of the Lost to be given a chance to live in Auradon and attend Auradon Prep. He couldn't help but feel sorry for the children on the Isle; he felt they were abandoned by the people in charge of Auradon who chose to ignore the kids being raised by villains and could possibly be going through some form of abuse. Both Beast and Belle were very surprised. He said that they would just start with a few: four to be exact. He chose the descendants of Cruella De Vil, Jafar, Evil Queen, and Maleficent.

Mal, the daughter of Maleficent, was the leader of the four. She was a feisty, purple-haired girl who did not let anyone get in her way. She practically ruled over the Isle with her mom being known as The Worst Villain in the Land. Like her mother, she possessed some magic, but she wasn't able to truly control it since magic was barely alive on the Isle of the Lost.

Jay, the son of Jafar, enjoyed running wild on the Isle and stealing whatever he could find for his father's shop. He was definitely a 'prince of thieves' if you will. Despite his tough demeanor, he would do anything to make sure his friends and anyone he cared about were protected.

Evie, the daughter of the Evil Queen, was no doubt the girly-girl of the group. The blue-haired beauty was a heartbreaker for sure, having been raised to be the perfect princess and have a goal of someday marrying into royalty. Despite this life-long goal, Evie had a passion for fashion and make-up. Evil Queen made sure that Evie was the best looking and most beautiful girl in Auradon. However, she wasn't very evil. The worst she has probably done was reject a guy.

Carlos, the son of Cruella De Vil, like Evie, wasn't really seen as evil. He was really smart and quite good with technology. The younger boy was often fiddling around with some sort of piece of machinery. Carlos used to be very anxious and skittish, but over the years, he became one of the bravest members of the team.

When the four of them arrived in Auradon, they met many other students: Audrey, the daughter of Aurora and Prince Phillip-Jane, the daughter of Fairy Godmother-Chad, the son of Cinderella and Prince Charming-Doug, the son of Dopey-and Lonnie, the daughter of Fa Mulan and Li Shang.

Many of the Auradon Prep students were very wary of the new VKs (Villain Kids). Many of them were not kind to them at all. After Ben's coronation, the VKs proved to be signs of good. They now lived in Auradon peacefully like the rest of the heroes.

Life went on as it always does. Mal and Ben got married not long after graduation. Evie and Doug's wedding followed shortly after. Jane and Carlos waited until after college to get married. Though it took a couple of years, Jay and Lonnie finally got married after confessing their love to each other.

A couple of years later, Mal and Ben welcomed their bundle of joy: a daughter. She was named Brelyn. Lonnie and Jay also had a daughter named Jacey only a couple months after Brelyn was born. Life couldn't be perfect for the two couples. Both Brelyn and Jacey brought joy to the entire group. There was no doubt the other two couples would have children soon.

Because they were still pretty young, Carlos and Jane decided to wait a year or two before having children of their own. However, they never turned down an opportunity to babysit their friends' kids.

Evie and Doug wanted kids probably more than their friends did. Both had intended to have a big family. However, they had some trouble. They were trying for a baby, but they never seemed to have any luck. 

Unfortunately, all good things seem to always come to an end. A threat was made against Auradon. Many could tell it came from the Isle of the Lost. Many could also tell it was targeted towards the four VKs. The VKs feared that their children's lives were in danger. It was a very hard decision, one no one wanted to make in their lifetime, but they decided to give up their daughters. It wasn't easy for either of the couples, but they knew it was for the little ones' protection.

Evie and Doug finally got what they wanted: a child. Unfortunately, they had to give up their daughter, in which they named Elaina, just hours after her birth. Saying Evie was devastated would be an understatement. She cried herself to sleep for many nights after Elaina was born.

Jane and Carlos also had a daughter just a couple months after Evie and Doug. They named her Cayla. Just like the others, they had to give their daughter up.

The four girls grew up together in the foster system. Their main home was the orphanage, the Auradon Home for Children to be exact, but life wasn't at all easy.

The case and social workers tried their best to keep the girls together, but they often were moved from foster home to foster home. Because they felt the girls' parents would one day find them again, they wanted to make sure of that. Also, in order to keep them safe, they were instructed to move the girls every so often, so they couldn't be tracked by anything or anyone who may want to hurt them. They were never in a single place for more than a year.

The girls seemed to be at their best when at the orphanage. Brelyn, Jacey, Elaina, and Cayla were practically inseparable. Brelyn and Elaina were just as close as their mothers. The same went for Jacey and Cayla with their fathers.

All four did begin to wonder about their parents as they got older. What were they like? Were they dead? Were they alive? Were they looking for them? Did they not care about them? What was it that caused them to grow up in a faulty system? The girls wanted to find that part of them that was missing from their lives for so many years.


	2. A Royal Invitation

Brelyn began to open her eyes as the morning sun peered upon her bed. She considered herself lucky that she lived at one of the better orphanages. She heard stories from previous foster siblings from other orphanages. They had said that up to twenty kids had to share one room. In her room, Brelyn only shared with her best friends: Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla. Well, for right now, only Elaina and Jacey. Cayla was currently living with another foster family. However, the girls, including Cayla, knew she would be back soon. The girls were always sent back. Foster homes never lasted long. Adoption just never was in favor of them.

The four girls have gone through so much together. They could not imagine each other's lives without them. Brelyn had the bottom bunk of the bunk bed she shared with Jacey. She looked over to the second bunk bed on the other side of the room. Elaina, on the bottom bunk, was already awake. If Cayla was here at the moment, she'd be waking about now as well on the top bunk.

Elaina sat up and stretched as she reached for her glasses on the nightstand beside the bed. She put them on, pushing her shoulder-length, blue hair out of her face.

"Good morning," Elaina said to Brelyn.

"Morning," Brelyn replied, rubbing her eyes and pushing her purple hair out of her face.

Jacey woke up shortly after. The girls would sometimes sit around in their bedroom before heading down for breakfast. They would talk and laugh about whatever was on their minds. They were the only true family they had. 

It was coming to the end of summer. The girls were going into their freshman year of high school this year. One of their biggest dreams was to attend Auradon Prep. Unfortunately, it had become very hard to get into these days. Common foster kids like them were bound to never get accepted.

A knock on the door lifted the girls from their conversation. "Good morning, girls," said the lady as she opened the door.

"Good morning, Ms. Jones," the girls said.

"Breakfast will be done soon. Get dressed please."

The girls all got up, so they could get dressed. Brelyn got dressed in a purple T-shirt with dark blue, jean shorts. Elaina wore a blue dress. Jacey wore a pink tank top with dark brown shorts. None of them knew why, but they really enjoyed wearing the colors they did.

* * *

The three girls walked downstairs to join the rest of the foster kids who were currently living at the orphanage in the cafeteria for breakfast. There were kids of all ages there: Some as young as newborns, and others who were almost old enough to live on their own and age out of the system. Unfortunately, the orphanage didn't get as much food. They had to ration out the food to be able to feed everybody. Some say it's just as much food the people on the Isle of the Lost.

One term that was thrown around the foster system was that the orphanages felt like mini Isle of the Losts. It was as if they all had to fend for themselves in some way or another. Not many of the kids at the orphanage were very nice. Who could blame them? They've been to several foster homes where no one wanted them. The girls were some of the few who kept their spirits high; well, as high as they could be.

"Here's breakfast," one of the older kids said, placing trays in front of the girls at the table they were sitting at.

"Oatmeal? Again?" Jacey complained.

"Hey!" the older kid snapped. "Just be glad this isn't the Isle of the Lost. You'd be getting much worse. Now, just eat your slop and get out of my face!"

"Well," Brelyn started, "somebody's in a bad mood today."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Elaina added.

"Um, excuse me," an older woman said, coming to the girls' table. She was the orphanage tutor. When living in the orphanage, all of the kids went to a nearby school. However, whenever they were living with a foster family, they had to attend whatever school was in the area of the family. Due to the fact that the kids were always moving schools, they needed the tutor to help them with assignments since every school, even every teacher, has different lesson plans. "Elaina, you've finished that biology summer course, right?"

"Yes, Mrs. Anderson, it's right here," Elaina said, handing a packet to the woman.

"Thank you," she said as she walked away.

"I still don't completely understand it," Jacey said. "Why did you take a class over the summer that you're gonna take during freshman year anyway? I mean, I know you're really smart and all, but still."

"I just wanted to get it out of the way," Elaina explained. "Whenever we get switched around foster homes, we always end up behind."

"Like Jacey said though, you're really smart. You and Cayla are two of the first kids to get caught up. I mean, you both are a grade ahead. I think you've forgotten that you're a whole year younger than Jacey and me," Brelyn added.

"High school's different though," Elaina continued. "You have to make sure you have a certain amount of credits by graduation. I really don't want to risk it. Plus, I really want to get to chemistry. It seems more interesting."

"You know what I heard?" a voice said. The girls turned to face a girl with light brown hair that was wearing a red shirt with blue jeans. She also had freckles. "I heard that Auradon Prep has an amazing chemistry teacher."

"Cayla!" the girls said as Cayla sat at the table.

"You're back!" Jacey said. "What happened this time around?"

"I'll tell you all later in our room. Back to the chemistry thing. Elaina, you know the chemistry teacher at Auradon Prep has the best reviews in all of Auradon."

"I know. You have no idea what I'd do to just get into that school."

Their tourney team is one of the best in the land," Jacey added. "I even heard King Ben once played on it. Can you imagine being on the team losing to the ruler of the country."

Brelyn added, "That school is just so amazing in general. I heard it has a great education system and a friendly atmosphere. Plus, it's a boarding school. Which means-"

"Stability," Cayla finished for Brelyn. "Something we've never had. We'd be in one place for an entire year for four years. That's literally longer than we've ever stayed in one foster home."

"Think of all the opportunities we could have if we were over there."

Suddenly, a fight broke out at a table at the other end of the cafeteria. Food was being thrown in every direction.

"Honestly," Brelyn began, "I just can't wait to get out of this orphanage. I don't care if it's just to some stupid foster home. The sooner that happens, the better." The girls all nodded in agreement as they continued their breakfast.

* * *

About twenty miles from the orphanage, overlooking the ocean, was the beautiful, capital city of Auradon. It was in this very location that the King's Castle and Auradon Prep were located. Inside the castle, a woman with purple locks looked out the window.

"Don't you look beautiful this morning," a tall man said from the doorway.

She chuckled. "Hey, Ben," she replied.

"Mal, what's wrong?" Ben asked, embracing his queen.

"Has it really been fourteen years since..."

Mal didn't finish. She didn't have to. Ben knew exactly what Mal was talking about. "Yes, I believe it has been. Time seemed to move so much quicker after we hit five years."

"I still can't believe it."

"Neither can I."

The two stood in silence for a little bit, remembering the couple of months they had with their little girl, before Mal had an idea. "Ben?"

"Hm?"

"Do you think...I don't know." Mal was hesitant. She wasn't sure what circumstances were like at the moment, but it was worth a shot. "Do think...we could bring Brelyn back."

"What are you saying?" Ben asked, now confused.

"Ben, if my math is correct, she should be starting high school this year. How great would it be for her to attend Auradon Prep. The orphanage said that she may go through many foster parents in her life. That means she hasn't gotten any stability in her life. Here, she could have that. Anything close to or related to a threat hasn't been seen in almost a year. That's the longest we've gone without any potential threats. I think it's safe to say that she'll be safe if she returns to us."

"But if we do bring her back..."

"What?"

"That means the other three should be given the same chance as her."

"Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla," Mal said with a smile. Ben nodded. "Of course that includes them." Mal's smile became even bigger. "I can just imagine Evie reuniting with Elaina. She was the last of us to fully recover after giving up the girls. I wonder if Jacey's anything like Jay? I have a strong feeling that she's a lot like Lonnie. Cayla, I imagine being a perfect mix of Carlos and Jane."

"In order for this to happen, I would just have to talk with Fairy Godmother and Jane just to make sure we can accommodate them."

"I should probably talk to the others about this too. We should probably get their approval before doing this."

"Right before you go," Ben said as Mal was about to walk out the door, "just know we most likely shouldn't tell the girls that we're their parents right away. Who knows what their reactions would be like. Plus, even though it's been a year since the last threat, what we're doing is pretty risky. If something happens, there may be an event in which...we need to send them back."

"Send them back?" Mal asked. "As if getting sent back after how many foster homes isn't enough to make them feel like they're less than what they really are."

"Listen, I don't want to look at that outcome either," Ben said. "Remember, the whole reason we gave them up was to get them far away from you and the others for their protection."

Mal calmed down a little bit, starting to get an understanding of the situation they'd be putting themselves and the girls into. "I know," Mal sighed. Mal then headed out the door.

* * *

Back at the orphanage, the girls were back in their bedroom. Brelyn laid on her stomach on her bed, drawing in some sort of notebook. Jacey sat on the ground stretching. Elaina sat at the desk, writing something, and Cayla sat on the floor next to Brelyn's bed.

"So, your foster parents just didn't really care?" Brelyn asked.

Cayla shook their head. "I knew when I got there that they wouldn't want to adopt me. They didn't say anything bad about me. They didn't say anything good either. They just didn't care. My foster brother was pretty nice, but he played sports, so he wasn't home often."

"Cayla, I'm sorry."

"Eh, it's fine. It's not like they were my thirtieth foster home."

"Well, at least it's better than my fifty foster homes," Jacey replied. "Or Elaina's one hundred foster homes." Suddenly, Elaina seemed to tense up. "Oh, I'm sorry, Elaina."

"I-It's...um...It's fine," Elaina replied, obviously trying to hide her true feelings about her previous foster homes.

"How many foster homes have you had, Brelyn?" Cayla asked. "I mean, you're rarely not here."

"Fifteen. Of my fourteen years here, I've only been to fifteen foster homes. I mean, if I went through more, I'm sure the results would not be any different from what you guys go through."

"Back here."

"Yep."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Come in," Jacey responded.

"Hey, girls," Ms. Jones said. "Mrs. Anderson wants to see you four in her office. She said she has some news for you."

The girls were very confused but did what they were told.

* * *

When they got to Mrs. Anderson's office, they were surprised to see two people dressed in yellow and blue uniforms standing on each side of her desk.

"Girls," she started, "these two gentlemen have made a delivery. In her hands was a scroll. She handed the scroll to Brelyn. Brelyn looked at her with a confused expression. Mrs. Anderson was oddly happy about this.

Brelyn opened the scroll and cleared her throat before reading. "Dear head of the Auradon Home for Children, I, King Ben of Auradon, and my lady, Queen Mal of the Isle, hereby request the company of Brelyn, Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla for the upcoming academic year at Auradon Prep!" Brelyn looked at her friends in shock, who were in shock as well. All four girls had smiles from ear to ear. "Please notify his majesty of your response immediately!"

"So," Mrs. Anderson started, "do you girls want to attend high school at Auradon Prep?"

"Yes!" the girls shouted simultaneously. They were ever so excited upon hearing the news. Neither of them could stop jumping up and down. This was going to be the start of a brand new chapter in their lives.


	3. We're on Our Way

The girls began packing for their new home in Auradon. They could not stop smiling all day. Some of the other kids at the orphanage were a little annoyed by this, but that didn't bother them one bit. They would be leaving tomorrow. This was not going to be like all the foster homes they've been to. This was different. They were finally gonna have a place that was going to last longer than just a couple months. 

"I still can't believe we're going to Auradon!" Cayla said excitedly. "It really is a dream come true!"

"I know!" replied Elaina. "It seems so unreal. I can't wait to see our dorms and see what our classes are like."

"Elaina, you're the only person I know who would be excited about classes," Jacey added.

"I just want to see what Auradon has in store for us," Brelyn said. "We can get so many more opportunities than we have ever had in our entire lives. This can be life-changing for us. You know, in a good way."

The girls continued to talk about what their new lives in Auradon were going to be like. They all knew one thing: their lives would never be the same after leaving the orphanage and the foster system. No more having to present themselves to foster parents who are not going to take them anyway. No more struggling to get one good meal at the orphanage. No more struggling in classes when they are moved from foster home to foster home. None of them could've guessed something this big would happen to them.

Ms. Jones leaned against the door frame, watching the four teenagers. She hadn't seen all of them that happy in a very long time. "I see you girls are almost ready for tomorrow." All four girls jumped slightly at the sound of her voice, not realizing she had been standing there. "Oh, I'm sorry. I should have knocked."

"No, you're fine," Brelyn said sweetly.

"Are you girls excited? This is pretty big."

"Can't you tell?" Jacey said, practically jumping up and down. Ms. Jones couldn't help but give a small chuckle to the fourteen-year-old's childlike reaction. "It has been our dream to go to Auradon Prep!"

Ms. Jones began to feel the emotions. It wasn't uncommon for kids to be in the foster system through their teens, but she felt much more connected with the four girls as opposed to some of the other teens at the orphanage. Many kids she's had connections with came and gone, but these four were something special. "I...I just want to let you guys know that I am so proud of all of you. You've been through so much, and I don't think any of you ever lost hope."

"Hey, Ms. Jones," Elaina began, "I think I can speak for all four of us when I say that we just wanna thank you for everything you've done for us. You've been the closest thing we've had to an actual mother. When we were feeling lonely or abandoned, especially after being rejected by a foster family, you were always there for us when we needed it, so thank you so much."

"Aw, come here," Ms. Jones said, embracing the girls. She would be lying if she said she didn't shed at least one tear when holding the girls in her arms. "I'm going to. miss you girls, but I know Auradon will treat you well."

"We're going to miss you too," replied Brelyn, snuggling her head in the crook of her caretaker's neck just as she had done when she was a little kid. 

"Thanks, girls," Ms. Jones responded. "Dinner's almost ready. Might wanna start heading down."

"Okay, thank you," said Cayla. Ms. Jones nodded as she left the girls' room. Cayla then came to a realization. "Guys, this is our last dinner here at the orphanage."

The other girls stopped what they were doing and started to think. "Wow," Jacey said. "Can't believe this is actually happening." All the girls nodded in agreement before heading down for dinner.

The girls walked downstairs and sat at their usual table in the orphanage cafeteria. Like every other meal at the orphanage, it was quite a bit chaotic. That night, they were eating meatloaf. It wasn't the best, given the orphanage could only do so much. Suddenly, a little girl with blonde pigtails and wearing a yellow T-shirt with a pink tutu-like skirt tapped on Elaina's shoulder.

Elaina turned around, coming face to face with the little seven-year-old in front of her. "Oh, hi Arianna."

"I heard you are going to Auradon Prep!" the little girl said excitedly. "Is it true?"

"It's true. My friends and I are all going together."

"Wow, that's so cool!" Arianna was a very happy girl and looked up to Elaia. She was like a little sister to Elaina (and sometimes the other three). She hadn't been very lucky in the foster parent department, which made Elaina feel very sorry for the young girl. However, she never seemed too upset over it. "I made this for you." Arianna handed Elaina a crayon drawing she made of the two of them. "That's us in Auradon," Arianna said, explaining all the different aspects of the drawing.

"This is amazing, Ari," Elaina replied.

"At least one of us gets to live our dream."

Elaina looked up at Arianna with a sad expression. Even if the younger girl didn't show she was upset, Elaina couldn't help but feel upset. She stood up and hugged the little girl. "I wish I could take you with me," she said. Elaina looked down at Arianna. "I promise you'll get adopted one day and hopefully get to go to Auradon. I know there's a really nice foster family out there looking for the perfect little girl to add to their family."

"I know I will," Arianna replied confidently. "Is that what's happening to you? Is a foster family adopting you and taking you to Auradon?"

Elaina gave a sad sigh. "I wish that were the case, but not exactly." She looked up to one of the tables that was just a couple feet away from the girls' table. It was filled with other kids who were around Arianna's age. "Your friends are waiting for you," Elaina said, motioning to the table.

"Bye!" Arianna said, waving happily at all four girls.

"Bye, Ari," Brelyn, Jacey, and Cayla said as Arianna walked away.

"Bye," Elaina said with a sigh.

As she sat down, the others could tell that Elaina was feeling a bit down. Brelyn put her hand on Elaina's, getting her attention. "She'll be okay. They all will."

Elaina looked back at the table full of little, hopeful kids. "I know," she replied, "but they all deserve so much more. I can't imagine any of them having to go through what we went through with terrible foster parents and struggling to find a place where they finally fit in."

The events that followed dinner happened so quickly. Pretty soon, the girls were pretty much fully packed and lied in their beds. The girls weren't usually ones to take a long time to fall asleep. Well, Elaina maybe, but it never lasted too long. Tonight was different. Tonight was the last night of living the life they did for their entire lives.

"You guys realize that tomorrow our lives are going to change forever, right?" Brelyn said.

"Yeah," the other three replied.

"Our lives will never be the same," Cayla added. "We're going to be Auradon girls."

"Guys?" Elaina began. "Can we promise each other that, no matter what happens, nothing will change between us."

Jacey was the one who noticed the nervousness in the blue-haired girl's voice. "You know nothing will change between us, right Elaina?"

"I...I know. I just...I don't know. Whenever I left for a new foster home, even though I knew I was most likely not going to be adopted, I always feared that, in the slim chance that I would get adopted, we would never talk again. You guys are basically my sisters and the only family I've had. We're the only family we've had for each other. I guess I'm just scared that things will change once we're in Auradon."

"Of course nothing will change between us. We promise."

Though the girls have been overly excited since they first got the invitation to Auradon Prep, the days leading up to their departure were a little bittersweet. They were still over the top that they were going to Auradon, but they were a little sad that they were leaving the lives they had. It was true; they couldn't wait to get out of the faulty foster system. They weren't sure if they could handle being rejected by another foster family. However, they couldn't help but think about what was going to happen after. Would they even fit in with the Auradon kids?

"Maybe we should get some sleep," Cayla said. "We have a really big day tomorrow."

"Yeah," Jacey replied. "Good night!"

"Good night," the others said as they all pulled the covers over themselves. 

Brelyn tossed and turned throughout the night. She couldn't help but think something much bigger than what the girls were expecting was going to happen. Regular foster kids don't just get special invitations like this. All she knew was that her life was going to get better. She promised herself not to believe otherwise.

"We're on our way," Brelyn whispered silently before drifting off to sleep.


	4. Welcome to Auradon

The girls woke up bright and early for their big day. They were both excited and nervous all at the same time. Neither one of them could stand completely still. Nerves and excitement overtook their bodies. They could not wait to see the new land they would live in for the rest of their lives. The girls were practically done packing. They just had a few extra things to include.

Elaina carefully placed the drawing Arianna had given her the night before on the top of all of her clothes in her suitcase. She sighed as she worried about Arianna, but she knew very well that Arianna was a physically and emotionally strong little girl. Elaina closed the suitcase as she tried to zip up the fully-stuffed bag.

Jacey walked around the room, making sure absolutely nothing was being left behind. All four girls have forgotten belongings at previous foster homes in the past and never got them back, so they wanted to make sure they got everything. The girls' have had this room since they were five and six years old. Jacey had inspected the room, top to bottom, just to make sure they were not leaving anything behind.

Cayla had the nit-picky job of removing tape off the walls. Because the girls have been in this bedroom for many years, they have taped many drawings, artwork pieces, photos, and posters on the wall. The tape was very hard to remove, but Cayla didn't seem to care. She was too excited about her new dorm room to worry about anything. That was something all four girls were super excited about: a room to finally call their own.

Brelyn stared out the window. The parking lot could be seen from their room. She stood there, waiting for that limo to appear. A limo! She said in her mind. They were going to Auradon in a limo! In just a short amount of time, Brelyn and her friends would be setting foot in Auradon Prep.

"Are you okay, Brelyn?" Cayla asked, showing real concern for her friend.

Brelyn nodded. "Yeah. Just a little nervous. That's all she replied.

"Everything will be fine. We'll be in a better place than where we are right now. It'll be better than any place we've stayed for that matter."

"I know. I'm just hoping we all find what we are looking for. We've all agreed that there's just something missing from our lives that is missing."

Jacey laughed. "I'm pretty sure that thing missing from our lives is parents. Given our track record with foster homes, I highly doubt we'll find something to fill that void."

"Maybe we will," Elaina added. The other three girls looked at her with confusion. She wasn't one to be optimistic about families and homes. Elaina shook her head, knowing exactly what was going through her friends' heads. "I mean, we most likely won't find parents or a family, but we can possible find something else that will make us feel, I don't know, complete."

"Elaina's right," Cayla said. "We just have to stay hopeful"

"Guys..." Brelyn interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"They're here!" All four girls rushed to the window. In the parking lot, there was a black limo with blue and yellow flags on the both sides of the hood. Two men, who looked very similar to the messengers who delivered the scroll a short while ago, came out and walked towards the orphanage entrance.

"Girls!" Ms. Jones called from downstairs. "It's time!"

The four girls stepped away from the window. "This is it." Brelyn spoke. They grabbed their stuff and headed out the door. Each one took one last look at the bedroom they had shared for many years before walking downstairs.

Once the girls arrived at the bottom of the stairs, they were greeted by the two drivers, Ms. Jones, and Mrs. Anderson. ?May we take your bags to the limo?" One of the drivers asked.

"Oh-um, sure," Brelyn answered. The four girls handed their bags to the drivers before facing Ms. Jones and Mrs. Anderson.

"We are so proud of you girls," Mrs. Anderson started. "I'm sure gonna miss tutoring you four. Especially you, Elaina." Elaina smiled softly and looked down as her face began to blush. She was always a bashful one. "You four are going to do great in your classes at Auradon Prep."

"Thank you," they replied.

"You girls never lost hope," Ms. Jones added. "You stayed friends and were always there for each other. Even after every foster home that didn't seem to be a good fit, you were there for each other." Ms. Jones began to get choked up. "Promise me you girls will keep that hope and joy in Auradon."

"We promise." The girls joined together in a group hug with the two women who have practically raised them and taught them everything they've ever known.

The two drivers returned to the door. "Are we ready?"

Each of the girls let go and waved as they headed out the door. One of the drivers held the limo door open while the girls entered it one by one. Before they knew it, the limo began its departure and on its way to Auradon. They all looked back at the only place that remotely felt like home. It was hard to believe that they'd have a place to call home. It wasn't long before the orphanage was out of their view.

The drive to Auradon Prep was not too bad. There was a mini candy bar set up in the limo for the girls' enjoyment. They didn't have candy very often at the orphanage or in foster homes, so Cayla and Jacey went crazy for it while Elaina and Brelyn enjoyed some lollipops and rock candy.

It took about twenty minutes to get to Auradon Prep. The girls' excitement only grew once the school was visible. Each one stared out the window with stars in their eyes.

The limo came to a stop. The girls could not believe that they were finally here. "You four can go ahead," one of the drivers said. "We'll bring your bags to your dorms once you get them."

"O-Okay," Brelyn said. "Thank you."

The other driver opened the door of the limo and each girl exited the limo one by one. Each of them was amazed by the view of Auradon Prep. The air was nice, the scenery was beautiful, and the castle looked absolutely gorgeous. The four were in awe.

"Why, hello," a voice called. The girls turned around to face the voice. The man wore a blue suit with some gold accents. Beside him stood a woman with purple hair, much like Brelyn's, and wore a lavender dress. "I am King Ben. son of Beast and Belle, and this is Queen Mal, daughter of Maleficent. Welcome to Auradon."

"W-Wow, thanks," Elaina said. "I never expected us to meet the king and queen right away. It-um, it really is an honor to meet you both."

"No need for any formalities," Ben said. That seemed to ease the girls' nervousness. "We just wanted to welcome you four personally. You're different than the students we've had in the past. Kind of like what we do with kids from the Isle of the Lost, we wanted to give foster kids and kids who may not be as fortunate a chance too."

The girls smiled in response. However, something was bothering Brelyn. For some reason, she seemed to be fixated on Ben and Mal. Mal faced the girls, just as Ben was, but she seemed to avoid eye contact, particularly with Brelyn.

Not long after, another woman came. She had brown hair, blue eyes, and we're a baby blue dress. "This is Jane," Ben said, motioning to the new woman. "She is the headmistress in training."

"In training?" Cayla questioned.

"My mother, Fairy Godmother, is currently headmistress," Jane explained. "Once she retires, I'll be taking over."

"Your mom is Fairy Godmother?" Cayla asked once more. "Like bibbidi bobbidi boo?"

Jane nodded. "Yeah."

"Wow. That's really cool," Cayla smiled, which made Jane smile in return. Cayla couldn't put her finger on it, but there was just something about Jane. Jane and Cayla smiled for a bit before Jane snapped out of her daze.

"So after the tour, you four should meet me around here, so I can give you your dorm assignments."

"Sounds good," Jacey replied.

"Then let's get started," Ben said. "Auradon Prep: an old castle, built just over three hundred years ago. It has been transformed into a high school when my father, Beast, became king..."

The group went ahead as Jane stood in the courtyard. A figure with white hair and freckles that had been hiding in the bushes approached her. The figure was a man who wore a red shirt, white vest, black pants, and black fingerless gloves. Jane hadn't even needed to turn around to know who it was. "Aren't you a little too old to be spying in the bushes?"

"You're never too old to have just a little fun," he replied. Jane turned to face him. He could tell that she was holding back. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know, Carlos," Jane replied. "I can't believe our daughter is here. She's grown up. She's thirteen years old, and we've missed it all. It still feels like yesterday we were holding her in our arms for the first time."

Carlos embraced his distressed wife. "I know," he replied. "I just wanna tell Cayla already, but Mal said that Ben said we should wait before telling her and the others."

"I honestly don't know how long I'm going to last before having some kind of emotional breakdown."

"Honestly," Carlos said, "I think you'll last longer than Evie. You remember how emotional she gets when even just thinking about her daughter, don't you?" Jane chuckled, but also felt a little sad. She remembered just how much pain Evie was in after she gave up Elaina. The face of the blue-haired girl was in her mind. She could easily see both Evie and Doug in her. When she and Carlos gave up Cayla, she did experience a lot of pain as well, but it was nowhere near Evie. "Hey, if you're not busy right now, you wanna grab something to eat before the girls get back from the tour?"

"I would love to, Mr. De Vil," Jane replied.

"Well, let's go then, Mrs. De Vil."

The tour lasted about a good hour before Ben and Mal brought the girls to the center of the dorm building. Jane waited there patiently with the girls' dorm assignments.

"I'll leave you to it," Ben said,

"Thank you," Jane replied. She returned her attention to the girls. "Here at Auradon Prep, we have a limit to two people per room. I know you girls spent almost your entire lives living together, so we tried our best to keep you girls together, so we tried our best at keeping you girls together. Brelyn and Elaina, you two will be rooming together, and Jacey and Cayla will be together. Now, don't worry, your dorms are right across from each other." Jane handed a dorm key to each girl with their dorm room number on it.

"Thanks," Elaina said. "Now, what about classes?" Jacey laughed at Elaina's comment. Elaina looked to Jacey with a smirk as she knew Jacey meant no harm by it.

"Your classes will actually be given to you girls by the academic counselor. Her office is down the hallway with lockers and to the left." Jane checked the time on her phone. "I gotta run. You girls should head to your dorms and get settled in. If you need anything, just come find me. I'll be around."

"Okay, thank you," Cayla responded. Jane nodded with a smile. She took one last glance at Cayla before running off.

The girls walked down the hall towards the dorms. Once they found their dorms, they entered. Brelyn and Elaina were in awe when they laid eyes on their new bedroom. There were two canopy beds across from each other, and every inch of the room was covered in pink. The girls' suitcases were placed nicely in the room, and they began to unpack. Once finished unpacking, they decided to go see the academic counselor for their classes.


	5. I Never Got No Love

The four girls walked down the halls together. Although school didn't start until Monday, there were many students roaming around the halls and getting settled in. They noticed a girl with red hair in the courtyard that just glared at the girls, which made them feel a little uncomfortable, but they tried to ignore it. They were walking towards the academic counselor's office for their classes. They were a little nervous, but they knew they would be just fine.

They approached the end of the hall and made a left, just as Jane had told them. They then approached a wooden door with a sign that read "Academic Counselor". on the side, there was another sign that read "Evie's 4 Hearts".

"The academic counselor runs a whole other business from her office?" Jacey questioned.

"I actually think it's really interesting," Elaina replied.

"Should we knock?" Brelyn asked? "What if she's busy?" The girls leaned in and put their ears against the door. They heard faint voices, but it wasn't clear enough to make out. Brelyn shrugged and knocked on the door.

"Come in," the voice of a woman called from inside the room. The girls entered the room. They were surprised that the room held many dresses and sewing supplies. One side of the room had a desk with everything a normal office would have. The other half had sewing supplies, dresses, and many outfit designs taped and pinned to the wall. "Just a second," the lady said.

There were two women in the room. One was trying on a dress that included pink and blue fabrics. She had tan skin with brown hair. The other woman had light skin and was wearing a royal blue dress. She also had beautiful blue hair upon her head. Elaina was surprised to see someone that had an interesting hair color just like herself. The blue-hared woman seemed to be doing a dress fitting for the other woman.

The other woman's eyes fell upon the girls. She had a smile on her face, but it started to fade slightly once she caught sight of them. "Evie," she said, trying to get the other woman's attention. "Evie!" she called again. Evie looked up at the woman. The woman nodded her head, motioning to the four girls. Evie turned around to face the four. She took one glance at them and her jaw dropped slightly. Of course, the first one she laid eyes on was Elaina. Evie was fixated on her. Elaina had inherited her blue hair and brown eyes. She placed her hand over her heart as she felt like it was melting.

"So," Elaina started, "is either one of you the academic counselor?"

"Oh-um," Evie began, getting out of her trance, "that would be me."

"Wait," Elaina began, "So you're an academic counselor and a fashion designer?" Evie nodded slowly, not knowing where the younger, blue-haired girl was going. "That's really cool! Shows people that people can be skilled in more than one thing in life, and you don't have to just settle on one thing."

Evie exhaled deeply as she seemed to have been holding her breath. She also gave the girls a warm smile. "Well, I've always been obsessed with fashion ever since I was a little girl. I began making my own clothes once I became a teenager, and once I came to Auradon, I had the opportunity to open my own business at sixteen years old. Additionally, I fell in love with the world of education and learning. I didn't really have that growing up, so I wanted to help kids who may struggle in that realm."

"So," the other woman started. "I'm just gonna wait outside until you guys are done with all of this." She headed out the door with a little skip in her step.

"Wha-Audrey!" Evie said as if she didn't want her to leave. Audrey mouthed "good luck" as she closed the door behind her.

"So, we're supposed to get our classes, right?" asked Jacey.

"Oh right. You four are the foster kids that Ben invited, right?" Evie asked, despite knowing exactly who each girl was. She got on her computer and searched for each girl's schedule. "Life must have been pretty hard, bouncing between the orphanage and foster homes," Evie said, trying to break whatever awkward silence was going around the room.

"Yeah, it was pretty rough," Cayla said, scratching the back of her head. "I actually just got back from a foster home a few days ago."

"Oh, what was it like?"

"Eh, it wasn't necessarily bad, but it wasn't really good either," Cayla replied. "Like I said, it can be pretty...rough."

"I can imagine. I grew up on the Isle of the Lost, so I understand how hard it must have been. In case you didn't know, I am the daughter of the Evil Queen. Yep, I'm a villain kid. One of the first King Ben invited to Auradon."

"Wow, must have been hard," Elaina stated. "I heard love wasn't exactly something you received over there. I know how it feels to feel unwanted. I've lost count the number of times I've been told I was getting sent back to the orphanage because I wasn't a 'good fit' or whatever."

Evie's heart dropped at Elaina's statement; she felt bad for the girls. Eve started to remember her time on the Isle and finally arriving in Auradon. She had been given a chance. Thanks to the chance she was given, she was able to discover more about herself. Not only was she I love with fashion, but she loved spreading the love of learning to others. She decided to pursue both after graduating from Auradon Prep. She was glad the girls would be given a chance as well.

However, she couldn't get past Elaina's comment. Elaina mentioned feeling unwanted. Evie wished she could tell her the truth. She wished she could wrap her arms around her little girl and tell her that she was always wanted. Evie began taking deep breathes to calm herself so she wouldn't freak out. That could wait until the girls weren't present.

"Here are your schedules," Evie said, reaching for the papers she just printed out. As she handed them to the girls, she noticed something. "Elaina, I see you're taking chemistry," Evie said.

Elaina smiled brightly. "Yep! I wanted to be ahead in science. I'm more interested in chemistry than biology. That's why I took biology over the summer."

"Smart girl," Evie said, nodding. "Your teacher is one of the best in Auradon."

"So I've heard," Elaina replied.

Elaina and Evie smiled at each other for a while. Evie just could not take her eyes off of her; she was unable to take her eyes off her one and only child that she hasn't seen in thirteen years. She was much like her. Evie didn't know why it took her so long to realize she was wearing glasses, but when she did take notice, her heart melted. It made Evie wonder just how much Elaina was like Doug. She remembered when they first found out they were pregnant, they had imagined what their child would look like. Evie dreamed their child would have glasses just like their father.

"Well," Brelyn said, snapping both Elaina and Evie out of their trances, 'We better get back to our dorms and continue getting settled in."

"Oh-um, yeah," Elaina said. "Thank you," Elaina said to Evie. Evie nodded in response. The four girls left together. Once they were gone, Audrey re-entered. Evie sat back down in her desk and put her head into her hands.

"Are you alright?" Audrey asked.

"I-I don't know," Evie said with a crack in her voice. She was getting really choked up. "I-It's been so long. She's everything I've ever imagined her to be."

Audrey could tell Evie was on the brink of tears. She remembered the heart brokenness that happened thirteen years ago. She knew how much giving her daughter up had effected Evie. "Hey," she said with a comforting voice. "Everything's going to be okay. From what we can tell, for now, they're going to be safe."

"You remember what Ben said," Evie said. "If something comes up, we may have to send them away again. Elaina mentioned she's been sent back to the orphanage from foster homes several times. We know why that happened. The foster system was ordered to move the girls around, so they were never in one place too long, but they don't know that. Elaina doesn't know that."

"Hey, I wouldn't know what you are going through, and I hate the fact that you, Doug, and the others have to." Audrey thought of her two kids: Chad Jr. and Aria. She couldn't even imagine what it would be like if she had to give them up and worry about their safety. "But I'm sure when the time is right, you'll be able to tell Elaina the truth."

"Audrey, what if she's mad? She already seems to be upset by it."

"She might be," Audrey said, not wanting to say she wouldn't without knowing for sure. "She might not. Who knows? She may be feeling terrible about it right now, but, like I said, I'm sure when the time is right, you'll be able to explain everything. Why you had to give her up as well as why she was moved so many times. Though, if she's anything like you or Doug, I'm sure she's going to understand everything just fine when you do tell her."

"I just wish I could give her the love I never growing up. Before this whole thing happened, I made a promise to myself that I would never let any of my kids go through what I did. I didn't want to be the mother my mom was," Evie said.

"Hey, you can still be there for her. I'm sure she wouldn't mind you checking up on her every now and again. Just don't make it too obvious to the point where she starts to believe something is up."

Evie giggled. "You know Audrey, we may have had our differences in the past, but I'm glad I have you as a friend. Thank you."

Audrey bent down to hug her friend. She didn't know what the VKs were going through; she didn't want to know what the VKs were going through. She wanted to be there for them though; that she knew.

"I have to talk to Doug," Evie told Audrey.

"You do that. It might even help."


	6. Suspicions and Worries

Brelyn and Elaina both had changed into their pajamas. Brelyn's pajamas consisted of a purple tank top with black pants, and Elaina wore a blue T-shirt with black shorts. They were about to spend their first night at Auradon Prep. Sure, they have had many first nights in foster homes, but this felt different.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in," Elaina called out. Jacey and Cayla entered the room. Jacey wore a maroon, long sleeve shorts with pink pants, and Cayla was wearing a red, long leave shirt with white and black polka dot shorts.

"So, today's been interesting," Jacey said.

"It sure has," replied Brelyn. "But in a good way."

The room fell silent. The girls didn't know what else to say. The day kind of just... happened. It wasn't as eventful as they thought it would be, but it was still very exciting for them.

"Do you guys find it weird that Queen Mal was mostly quiet during the tour?" Jacey asked."I don't know why, but it seemed kind of odd."

"Yeah, it was a little weird," Brelyn replied. "It's like she couldn't tell how much eye contact to make with us. She either made way too much contact or avoid making eye contact. I wonder why she was like that?"

"Anybody else think that something was off with that headmistress in training, Jane?" asked Elaina.

"She seemed to be a little nervous and a bit jumpy," Cayla mentioned. "you'd think for someone who's used to talking to new students would be a little more confident with something like this, but other than that, she seems nice. What did you guys think of the academic counselor?"

"You mean Evie?" Elaina asked. "I think she's pretty cool. I mean, how many people do you know that has two completely different jobs. She's running a business while working another job that includes helping kids."

"You have to admit though," Brelyn said, "she was acting a little off as well."

"I guess it wasn't what I was expecting from an academic counselor."

"what is it with people today?" Brelyn asked.

"That's a little suspicious," Elaina said. "Did anyone else notice that one red-headed girl that was staring us down?"

"Yeah, who knows what that was about."

The room fell silent once more. The girls' eyes darted across the room at each other. Though there was no physical talking going on, it was almost like the girls were speaking to each other telepathically.

"Maybe it's just us," Jacey mentioned. The other three were confused by this comment. "What I mean is, maybe we're just paranoid. We're probably just nervous about all of this. Changing schools and basically having your entire life be changed can be a little overwhelming. Maybe we will be better after a good night's sleep."

The girls nodded in agreement. "Yeah," Brelyn started, "you're probably right. We should start going to bed; it's getting late."

Jacey and Cayla waved goodbye as they returned back to their dorm room. After the door was closed, Brelyn shut off the light, and she and Elaina hopped into their beds. Brelyn laid down with her hands behind her head. Elaina had the covers pulled up to her neck.

Elaina fell asleep very fast, which was very unlike her. Must have been because the beds were way more comfortable than any of the beds they were used to. Brelyn looked at her sleeping friend and was glad Elaina was able to go to sleep quickly. She remembered staying plate with Elaina on nights she was unable to sleep, mostly on nights where she was sent back to the orphanage.

This time was different; Brelyn was the one who couldn't sleep. She couldn't stop imagining what her new life in Auradon was going to be like. This journey she and her friends were on was basically a mission of self-discovery. Each girl wanted to find something about themselves. Hopefully, none of them would be too disappointed.


	7. First Day

Monday morning came very quickly. All four girls were very excited about their very first day as high schoolers at Auradon Prep. Each girl had their first day of school outfit picked out. Brelyn wore a purple dress, and her hair was half up half down. Elaina wore a blue top with a black skirt, and her hair was down and curled. Jacey wore a maroon T-shirt with black jean shorts, and her hair was in a high ponytail. Cayla wore a red tank top with black jeans, and her hair was in two french braids.

After each girl packed their bag, they met up in the courtyard. All four had smiles from ear to ear. They weren't the only ones though. Many of Auradon Prep's students were hanging out in the courtyard. Everybody seemed to be excited about the new school year.

"Hey, you're wearing your lucky necklace," Brelyn said to Elaina, motioning to the jewelry around her neck.

Elaina looked down at the necklace. She didn't realize she had been playing with it. The pendant of the necklace was half of a red apple. It was one of those necklaces that came in pairs. Someone out there had the other half of the apple, but Elaina just didn't know who. She has had the necklace ever since she was a baby. "Yeah, I put it on just to make sure I would have a good day. I honestly cannot imagine myself not wearing it for a day as important as this."

"What d you guys have as your first class? asked Jacey. "Mine is History of Auradon."

"Mine is Grammar," Brelyn replied.

"Mine is Geometry," both Cayla and Elaina said simultaneously. Both girls looked at each other with shock and happiness.

"What about second period?" Brelyn asked. "Mine is Magical History."

"I have Grammar," replied Cayla.

"I have Chemistry," Elaina said.

Suddenly, the bell rang. It was time for class to start. the girls faced each other and took a deep breath. "Let's do this," Brelyn said.

The girls parted ways. Elaina and Cayla waved goodbye to their friends as they headed to their geometry class. "Are you nervous?" asked Cayla.

"A little," Elaina replied, "but I'm almost positive everything will be fine."

Brelyn walked into her Grammar class. She took a seat in the back. She didn't want to sit in the front and cause people to notice her. Then again, everybody in her class was a freshman; it was the first year at Auradon Prep for many of them. Brelyn got up from her seat and moved about two rows up. It still wasn't the front, but she felt more comfortable since it was easier to see.

Brelyn felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to face a girl. The girl was wearing a baby blue dress that had light pink accents. "Hi," the girl said. "I'm Aria. Nice to meet you." She had her hand out for a handshake. Brelyn slowly shook Aria's hand. "You're one of the foster kids, right?" she asked, sitting down in the seat next to Brelyn. "What's your name?"

"My name is Brelyn," Brelyn started, "and you're correct. I am one of the foster kids from the orphanage."

"Why does that name sound so familiar?" Aria mumbled to herself.

"What was that?"

"O-Oh nothing," Aria stuttered, trying to cover up her comment.

"So," Brelyn began, "how new to Auradon Prep are you?"

"Fairly new I guess," Aria stated. "My parents were students here when they were in high school. My older brother attends school here as well. His name is Chad Jr., and he's a junior."

"Chad Jr.?" Brelyn asked. "I'm just gonna go out on a limb and guess your father's name is Chad."

"You're right," Aria acknowledged. "Chad Charming, son of Cinderella and Prince Charming. He's a great guy and all. Don't get me wrong, I love him to pieces, he's my dad after all, but he's not a lot of there there. You know what I mean?"

Brelyn nodded. "What about your mom?"

Aria responded, "My mom is Princess Audrey, daughter of Aurora and Prince Phillip."

"Wow, so you're basically a princess?"

"Yeah, but I'm not really interested in all that. Mom says I'll understand it better when I'm older."

Brelyn nodded. The teacher then entered the room. "Good morning, class, and welcome to a new, fantastic year at Auradon Prep."

Back in Jacey's History of Auradon class, she sat in the front row of the class. Unlike the other three, her insecurities didn't bother her as much. Don't be fooled, she has quite a lot of insecurities, but she tries to ignore them and put herself out there. Jacey watched as other students began to file in. Nobody seemed to notice her. Jacey was a little relieved about this as she didn't want any first-day drama. She hoped none of her friends had drama going on.

Jacey did feel a little awkward sitting there and not socializing. It seemed everybody must have gone to middle school together. Jacey spotted a group of girls. All of them had their hair curled and wore cute dresses. Jacey tried to introduce herself. "Hey, I'm Jacey. I'm new here."

The group of girls kind of just stared at her. She was different than what they were used to. After taking a glance at her, the group of girls continued their conversation.

"Rude," Jacey thought to herself as she sat back down in her seat. It didn't take long for her to notice that one of the girls was the red-headed girl from the courtyard.

"That's Harmony. You don't want to mess with her," a voice said from behind her.

Jacey looked at the seat behind her. There was a boy with dark hair sitting right behind her. "Harmony?"

"Harmony," he said pointing to her. The girl has blue eyes and wore a sea-green dress. "That's Melody's daughter. You know, Ariel and Prince Eric's granddaughter." Jacey nodded in response. "You're not from around here, are you?"

"Is it that obvious?" Jacey asked.

"Only a little. I'm Aiden. My dad is Aziz, who is the son of Aladdin and Jasmine. What's your name? Who are your parents?"

"My name is Jacey, and I don't have any parents. I'm a foster kid."

Aiden's smile dropped immediately."O-Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't-"

"Don't worry, you're good. It's not like people haven't made a comment like that before. I'm used to it," Jacey giggled. Jacey isn't really hurt when people ask who her parents are. Sure it stings a little, but it never really left any emotional scars on her. The teacher then made the class calm down for the class to start.

Aiden laughed. "I like you. I'm going to remember you."

Jacey chuckled as she turned around to face the front.

Elaina and Cayla sat next to each other in their Geometry class. Both were the youngest in the class as they both were able to skip a grade when they were younger because they were really smart. Elaina, if she really wanted to, was able to be two grades ahead, but she didn't want to do that. Both girls were freshmen who were aged to be eight graders, and they were taking a math class meant for sophomores.

Everybody else was talking to their friends. Cayla and Elaina were both glad to have first period together; they both were quite shy and talking to new people wasn't something either of them was best at.

"Are you nervous about taking chemistry?" asked Cayla. "You're going to be in class with a bunch of older kids. Not only that, but the corresponding math with Chemistry is Algebra 2."

"I guess I'm a little nervous about me being the youngest in the class," Elaina admitted, "but I'm most likely smarter than most of the kids in that class. As for the math, I've looked into a bit of Algebra 2. I was given the chance to take a summer class of geometry, so I could be in Algebra 2 now, but I decided not to. I wouldn't be in this class with you now if I did."

Cayla laughed. She too was glad Elaina chose to stay in the same math as her. The girls noticed that some kids started to take notice of them. Jacey and Brelyn were both only taking Algebra 1, which was the freshman math level. Though, both Jacey and Brelyn were at the right grade for their age.

One girl started walking over to the girls' desks. This made the girls nervous. Cayla began moving her thumbs around in her lap, and Elaina played with her necklace once more.

The girl then approached their desks and waited for the girls to make eye contact before starting. "Freshman?" she asked. Both girls nodded. The older girl nodded as well. "You look familiar," the girl said pointing to Elaina. Elaina looked at Cayla who just shrugged her shoulders. "Is it the blue hair?" The girl thought about it for a second. "Maybe it's the glasses." She then took Elaina's glasses off her head.

"Hey!" Elaina said, raising her voice but not loud enough for the whole classroom to hear.

"Don't worry," the girl said. "I'll give them back."

Elaina sat down. She gave Cayla an annoyed face. She was squinting too, which gave Cayla the sign that she was having a hard time seeing.

The girl looked into Elaina's glasses and quickly looked away. "Wow, you have really bad eyesight."

"I know. That's why I need glasses. Can you give them back please?"

"Here," the girl said as she handed Elaina her glasses before walking away. Elaina put her glasses on and blinked a couple of times to readjust her eyes.

"That was weird," Cayla said.

"That was," Elana said. "This year's gonna be interesting."

"Yep."


	8. Chemical Bonding

First period was now over. The girls met up with each other in the hall during passing period. They talked about how their first period went. Brelyn talked about meeting Aria, Jacey mentioned Aiden and Harmony, and Elaina and Cayla talked about that one girl from geometry class.

Cayla checked the time on her phone. "We should start heading to our next class. We don't want to make it seem like we're the ones who are always late to class." The girls nodded in agreement. They waved goodbye as they went their separate ways.

Elaina had her class schedule out, so she could find what room the chemistry class was in. Thankfully, she found it quickly. When she entered the room, she already felt a little overwhelmed. The kids in that class were older and taller. She was the short and younger one in the class. She took a deep breath and walked further into the room.

She took a seat at the lab table in the front. She usually wouldn't do that, but she didn't want to be stuck in the back behind some tall kids. Elaina looked around nervously. All the older kids definitely intimidated her. She looked to the front where the teacher was writing stuff on the whiteboard. The teacher was a tall man with short, light brown hair. He also wore glasses.

"Alright class," the teacher began, "let's get started." The students all shuffled to find a sear. Some did sit next to Elaina; luckily none of them seemed to care. "My name is Mr. Dwarfman, but you can call me Mr. D or Doug. To me, formalities aren't that important in a school setting, and I want you all to feel as comfortable as you can and be yourself. I'm going to take attendance now. Say 'here' when I call your name. If I pronounce your name wrong or you go by something else, please tell me, so I can get used to it quickly." Doug read through the list of names. Elaina waited for her name to come around. "Elaina."

"Here," Elaina responded as she raised her hand.

"You're the little freshman who moved up a science level, correct?"

Elaina nodded her head. "Y-Yes." Most of the students in the class drew their attention to her. Elaina looked around nervously, having had wanted to avoid the attention.

"You're a freshman?" a student questioned.

"Yes, I am."

"How are you in chemistry then? Aren't you supposed to be in biology?"

"I took biology over the summer. I wanted to be ahead, I guess."

"Nice," the teacher nodded. He seemed to smile at Elaina the same way Evie did to her and Jane to Cayla. It was a warm smile that made her feel relaxed. Elaina didn't know what to think; it felt nice that so many people seemed to be impressed with what she has done. Doug then snapped out of his trance, remembering he had a class to teach. "Does anybody here know the first ten elements of the periodic table?" The class fell silent. Nobody really knew the answer.

"I know the first one is hydrogen," a student in the middle said.

"I'm pretty sure oxygen is number eight, right?" another added.

Elaina sat their silently. She knew the first ten elements. Should she say them? Elaina seemed to be certainly smarter than the sophomores and juniors in the class. Might as well put that knowledge of hers to good use. "Hydrogen, helium, lithium, beryllium, boron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, fluorine, and neon."

Doug looked at Elaina proudly and nodded. "Very nice, Elaina. I can tell it's going to be a good year with you in my class."

Elaina began blushing out of embarrassment. "I'm not really that smart," she said.

"Don't be silly," Doug chimed. "You're just like my uncle Bashful. Now, can anyone write on the board the equations for the four gas laws?" The class fell silent once again. Nobody knew. "Elaina? You wanna give it a try? Something tells me that you may have an idea of what I'm talking about."

It was true; Elaina knew just what he was talking about. She slid out of her seat slowly and made her way to the board. Doug handed Elaina the dry erase marker. Elaina took another deep breath before starting.

"In the gas laws," she started, "P equals pressure, V equals volume, and T equals temperature." Elaina wrote each variable on the board. "In Boyle's Law, the temperature is constant. The question is P1 x V1 = P2 x V2. In Charles' Law, the pressure is constant. The equation is V1 / T1 = V2 / T1. In Gay-Lussac's Law, the volume is constant. The equation is P1 / T1 = P1 / T1. In the Combine Gas Law, nothing is constant. The equation is (P1 x V1) / T1 = (P2 x V2) / T2." After writing the last equation, she set the dry erase marker down proudly. She smiled and faced the class.

Pretty much the entire class was in shock. Doug looked at Elaina with happiness and pride; this really was his daughter standing right in front of him. The daughter he remembered giving up. The daughter he missed out on raising and loving for all her life. The daughter he just wanted to tell her that he loved her.

Doug gave the class something's work on while he and Elaina had a conversation. They talked about a bunch of things that so-called "smart people" would understand. They also discussed the pressure of being at a higher level than some of the other students. Doug was really impressed by what she knew at such a young age. He was glad to have something to bond over. He wanted to tell Elaina he was her father badly, but he knew Ben and Mal had said not to.

Class ended very soon. "Have a nice day, Doug," Elaina told Doug as she exited the room. Doug watched as his little girl walked down the hall. He sighed. Doug then decided to find Evie.

Elaina walked down the hall, looking for her friends. As she was walking, she was on her phone, looking through her social medias such as InstaRoyal and Zapchat. Because she wasn't really paying attention to what was happening in front of her, she crashed into somebody. Elaina dropped her textbooks and her phone, and her glasses went flying off her head. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry!" Elaina said frantically as she bent down to get the stuff she had dropped.

"Oh no," the voice said. "You're completely fine." It was Evie. She quickly helped Elaina gather her books and phone. Evie then realized Elaina was scanning the floor with her hands. Evie realized Elaina couldn't see and was looking for her glasses. She found the glasses and placed them on the younger, blue-haired girl.

"Oh, thank you," Elaina uttered, positioning the glasses, so they were comfortable. Both girls stood up, and Evie handed Elaina the textbooks and phone. "Again, I'm so sorry."

"It's no big deal. It was just an accident," Evie responded. "It's not like this isn't something that doesn't happen on a regular basis here." Elaina giggled. She waved goodbye to Evie as she continued to find her friends.

Evie watched Elaina as she walked off. Suddenly, Doug came running towards her. Evie was startled by him. "Guess who I just had in my second period chem class."

"I'm gonna guess Elaina. You wouldn't be telling me about some other student," Evie humored.

"I can't believe it. She's the perfect mix of you and me. She has your looks and my intelligence."

"Are you saying I'm not intelligent?"

"No," Doug quickly added.

Evie sighed. "If I could turn back time, I would have given that girl the love she needed and deserved." Evie wiped a tear that had fallen from her eye. Even with the thirteen years that Evie hasn't been apart of Elaina's life, Elaina was the fairest of them all to her. The same went for Doug.

Doug hugged Evie from behind. "She was wearing the necklace, you know."

"She was?" Evie asked, turning to face him. When she and Elaina had bumped into each other, it all happened so fast, and she was too focused on the items on the ground that she hadn't noticed the necklace.

Doug nodded. "It's nice to see that the orphanage let her keep something from us."

"Yeah."

"Hey," Doug assured, "it'll be okay."

Evie looked up at him. "I really hope so. I really do."

"Hey, I've got to get back to my classroom. You good?"

Evie nodded. "Yeah. See you after school." Doug gave his wife a kiss before heading back. As Evie walked back to her office, she reached into her handbag. She pulled out a necklace with half a red apple; the other half to Elaina's. She held the jewelry close to her heart. She would be wearing it as well, but they didn't want Elaina noticing if she did end up having the necklace, which was the case. Evie sighed. "I love you, baby girl."


	9. Emotional Education

Third period was now starting. The day was going by faster than they had expected. Jacey was heading to her third-period class, which was Physical Education. She was pretty excited about this class; she loved all things related to sports and athletics. She was one of the most athletic kids at the orphanage. To Jacey, the only good part about bouncing between foster homes was getting to play different sports and outdoor activities with foster siblings.

After asking someone for directions to the gym, Jacey finally arrived to her class. There was a whole bunch of other freshmen girls in her class. "Hey," Jacey said, getting a girl's attention, "who's our teacher for this class?"

"You don't know?" the girl asked. The girl seemed to have a Scottish accent and had red, curly hair. Jacey shook her head. The girl seemed to understand it now. "Are you one of those foster girls I heard about?" Jacey nodded. "Well, that makes more sense. Anyway, our teacher is Li Lonnie. I don't know if you know, but she's the daughter of Mulan!"

"Daughter of Mulan?! Really?!" Jacey asked excitedly. "Mulan's only one of the coolest people ever! She single-handedly saved all of China. She also beat the odds that not all soldiers needed to be men! I can't believe her daughter is our PE teacher!"

"She's also married to Jay, who is the son of Jafar," the girl added. "Don't be fooled by the fact he's the son of a villain. He's actually one of the nicest teachers here. He's the PE coach for the boys." Jacey nodded with the information she was just given. "Oh, silly me. Where are my manners? What's your name?"

"Oh, my name is Jacey."

"Hey, Jacey! My name is Mary. My mother's name is Meredith, and she's the daughter of Merida, making her my grandmother."

"Wow, really?" Jacey asked. Mallory nodded with pride. "That's so cool."

"Hello, class," Lonnie said, walking into the room with a clipboard. "As you must know, I am your PE coach. My name is Lonnie, and I can't wait to spend this year with you girls. Just know one thing: just because you are a girl doesn't mean you can't do anything athletic. With that being said, tourney tryouts are right around the corner. Either one of you could be the rare chance of a girl being on the team."

"I so want to join," Mary said with excitement. "You should try out too! I mean, if that's something you would like to do. You know, there's no harm in trying."

"Are you kidding?" Jacey said. "I've always wanted to be on a tourney team!"

"Okay," Lonnie said. "I'm going to take attendance now." Lonnie went down the list of girls in the class. At a certain point, she stopped. The class seemed to notice Lonnie's pause.

"Um, Mrs. Lonnie," a girl called, getting Lonnie's attention. "Are you going to continue?"

Lonnie regained her attention. "R-Right," she stuttered, nervously. "Jacey?"

"Here," Jacey replied, raising her hand and smiling confidently.

 _That smile_ Lonnie thought to herself as she laid eyes on Jacey. She had remembered that little smile.

Lonnie cleared her throat as she brought herself back to reality. "So, because it is the first day of school, we won't be doing anything 'physical'. Let's just introduce ourselves and relax for today."

Most of the girls were relieved by that comment. _This school really is filled to the brim with pretty princesses_ Jacey thought to herself. She looked at Mary. She was a princess, but she definitely had more of a tomboy personality than most of the other girls Jacey had come across throughout the day. First Aiden, and now Mary? Was Jacey really making new friends quickly? She wondered if the other three were making new friends as well. Of course, her new friends could never replace her old friends though.

The class sat in a circle with each girl introducing herself. They had to say their name, who their parents were, what their favorite color was, and what they wanted to achieve in life. Most of the girls said stuff like they wanted to become the perfect princess. Every few girls had genuine answers for what they wanted to do in life.

Soon, it was Jacey's turn. Jacey stood up. Lonnie paid close attention to the girl. "Well, my name is Jacey. I don't have any parents. I've been an orphan since I was a newborn. I've had many foster parents in the past though. I really do mean many foster parents. I think I've had around fifty different foster homes." Most of the girls felt bad for Jacey. Some covered their mouths, and others put their hands over their hearts. Lonnie looked down at her hands in her lap. She seemed to feel bad for Jacey more than the girls felt for her. "Oh, and um, my favorite color is either pink or maroon. I also really like sky blue."

Jacey had to think about the last one for a bit. "I have two answers for what I want to achieve in life. Is that okay?"

"Oh-um, yes, that's fine. Say whatever you need to say," Lonnie told her.

"Well," Jacey began with a deep breath, "for the first one, I've always wanted to do something that had to do with sports. I've always loved playing sports ever since I was little. I love playing sports like soccer, softball, and volleyball. The two sports I am most interested in are tourney and R.O.A.R."

"R.O.A.R.?" one girl questioned. "Isn't that the sword fighting thing? I think my dad used to play it when he was in high school."

"Yes," Jacey answered. "Those two have always been my favorites."

"That's really cool that you enjoy those things," Lonnie said with pride. "What about the second thing?

"W-Well, I don't know," Jacey mumbled. "It's kind of embarrassing."

"Don't worry," Lonnie reassured. "We won't say anything to make you feel insecure, right girls?" All the girls nodded in response.

"Well, as I said before, I am an orphan. I've never known what it's like to have parents. Well, more like what it's like to have parents that care about you and treat you like their own kid. As I said, I've had many foster parents growing up, but none of them seemed to be the right fit." Lonnie tensed up as Jacey spoke. She seemed to know where Jacey was going with this. "With that said, of course, I've has my curiosities about who my real parents are. Though a lot of kids at the orphanage and some at foster homes had bad impressions of their parents in their minds, I've always had a positive impression of my parents. I bet they were great people. They just were unable to take care of me for whatever reason that might be. Maybe they didn't have the needs and resources to raise me properly and giving me up was the only way they could ensure that I my needs would be met. I guess what I'm saying is I hope to someday meet my real parents if they're still out there. I have a pretty good feeling that they are."

The class fell silent. Some had tears in their eyes. Jacey sort of expected this since most of the girls were princesses or some royalty in some way, shape, or form. Lonnie even had tears in her eyes. Jacey wasn't expecting her story to be emotional enough for someone like the daughter of Mulan to tear up.

Lonnie cleared her throat and wiped the tears out of her eyes. She looked at the time. "Class is finished in about five minutes," she announced to the class. "I'm going to let you girls leave early."

The class grabbed their things and shuffled out the door. Mary caught up with Jacey. "Bye," she said, waving and heading in her own direction.

"Bye," Jacey replied.

Lonnie stood by the door of the girls' locker room. She watched Jacey as she walked along the hallway. Lonnie didn't think she would get emotional around Jacey, but then again, she began crying when Mal told her that she and the other VKs never got any real love from their parents.

"Okay, boys," a voice boomed from the boys' locker room. "I'll see you all tomorrow. Don't forget about the tourney tryouts!"

Lonnie walked up to the voice. "Jay," she said, getting his attention.

"What's up?" he asked happily. His smile slowly dropped as he realized Lonnie was distressed about something. "Lonnie, what happened?"

" _She_ was just in the class I just had," Lonnie told her husband.

Jay knew right away what she was talking about. "What was she like?"

"She was amazing," Lonnie exclaimed with a smile. "She's everything I could have asked for in a daughter. She loves sports, and she's really sweet and humble. She's basically me but with your hair."

Those comments and Lonnie's happiness towards Jacey made Jay's heart warm and made him smile. He wished he could have been there to see his long lost daughter.

Lonnie then began frowning again. "She talked about her being a foster kid, the many homes she's loved in, and wanting to find her real parents."

Jay looked at Lonnie in shock. "Really?" Lonnie nodded. Jay wrapped his arm around her. "Everything's going to be fine. I know this sounds repetitive, and the others probably have said this, but I mean it. Let's just look on the bright side of things for now. There are no signs of a threat, the girls are fine, and they're here. Sure, we can't tell them everything just yet, but we can watch and protect them from a distance."

"Yeah," Lonnie sighed. "Thanks, Jay," she said, hugging him. She smiled as she always had a soft spot for Jay's hugs. She looked up and noticed the next class of kids coming in. She let go of Jay, so the students wouldn't make silly comments. "Looks like I've got to get going. It's been a pretty emotional day."

"Yeah," Jay replied. "See you later."

"Bye," Lonnie said. She walked back towards the girls' locker room with the though of what-could-have-been with the fourteen-year-old daughter she never got to give love.


	10. Lunchtime Drama

The girls met at one of the lunch tables outside; it was now lunchtime. They all had trays from a cafeteria filled with all kinds of foods. At the orphanage, they never had this much of a selection for food. In foster homes, the girls were scared to ask for food in fear that it would make their foster parents mad. The girls were all happy. Their first day at Auradon Prep has been pretty smooth.

"Well, I got to show up my chemistry class, which is full of sophomores and juniors," Elaina gloated proudly.

"Nice," Jacey said. "I'm not sure, but I may or may not have made two friends."

"Really?" asked Cayla.

"What are their names?" Brelyn asked excitedly. "Why are they related to?"

"Well," Jacey started, "there's a boy in my History of Auradon class. His name is Aiden. He said his dad's name is Aziz, and his dad is the son of Aladdin and Jasmine. Another person I met is named Mary. She's the granddaughter of Merida. If I remember correctly, I think she said her mom's name was Meredith."

The girls continued to talk about how their day went. They also scarfed down the food they had on their trays. They viewed their meal better than every meal they had at the orphanage or in foster homes. 

"Seems like you four are enjoying your lunch," a voice said from behind. The girls turned around to see King Ben and Queen Mal.

"Reminds me of the first time my friends and I ever had a decent meal when I first came here," Mal said.

The girls fell silent. Brelyn's face began blushing a bright red color, Elaina was stuffing bread into her mouth, Jacey was scarfing down a slice of pizza, and Cayla was in the middle of eating spaghetti.

Mal looked at Cayla and chuckled. "Just like Carlos," she mumbled quiet enough for the girls not to hear, but Ben still nudged Mal's arm playfully but also to remind her to keep quiet about the subject. The girls quickly fixed themselves up, so they didn't look as embarrassing. "Don't worry about it. You girls are fine. When we first got to Auradon, my friend, Carlos, had chocolate all over his face."

"Anyway," Ben began, "how has your first day been so far?"

"It's been pretty good," Brelyn replied. "Nothing too big happened. Overall, it's been okay."

"Any questions you four have? About anything?" Mal asked.

"Not that I know of," Brelyn said, looking at the other girls. They shook their head.

"I think we're fine," Elaina said. Jacey and Cayla nodded in agreement.

"Well, if you need anything, you girls can always come to Mal or me."

"Okay," Brelyn replied. "Thank you for checking on us."

Ben nodded as he and Mal walked away. A group of girls began walking up to the girls' table. "Well, well, well," one of the girls said. When Jacey looked up, she knew exactly who it was; it was Harmony. "So you four are the foster kids I heard King Ben invited. I should have known."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jacey blurted, getting a little defensive. Jacey never really cared if people said something negative about her. Foster parents have said terrible things to her face, so she was used to it. However; if someone said something about her friends, she wasn't afraid to take matters into her own hands.

"Just know this, Harmony began, "you four will never be at the same level as anybody here at Auradon Prep. In my eyes, you're at the same level, or even lower, as the VKs. I mean, at least they had parents. Don't think just because you were personally invited by King Ben means you are anything special. You guys are nothing compared to the rest of us. Got it?"

"Hey!" a voice called out. "Back off!" It was Aiden. He was then backed up by Mary and Aria.

"What are you gonna do about it?" Harmony challenged. "My mom's a princess, and my grandparents are a queen and king.

"My parents are a princess and prince too," Aria argued. "My grandparents are kings and queens as well. I should also mention that my royalty comes from both sides of my family."

Harmony was annoyed with the three of them standing up for the foster kids. She began to walk away.

"And by the way," Aria began. "At least my grandmother didn't have to turn into a whole different species to get the attention of a prince."

Harmony's group of friends was shocked by Aria's comment. "Ooh, burn," one of them said.

"Ugh! Come on!" Harmony said to her group as she walked off madly.

"Are you four okay?" Mary asked.

"Yeah," Brelyn replied. "We're fine"

"Yep," Cayla added. "Except Jacey almost punched that prissy princess in the face. Other than that, we're okay."

"Don't let what Harmony says bother you," Aiden said. "Alright?"

The girls nodded.

"Can we join you for lunch?" Aria asked.

"Sure," Cayla said as her and the other girls were scooting over to make some room. The seven of them spent the rest of lunch talking and laughing with each other.


	11. Four Gemstones

School has now been going on for three weeks. The girls have been adjusting well to their new lives. They still have some things to get used to, but so far, everything's been okay. They have made good friends in Aria, Mary, and Aiden within those few weeks. Harmony can still be a bother, but at least the girls have their new friends to stand up for them.

The only thing was that the girls have been feeling weird in the last couple of days. They've just been having this feeling that they're being watched. None of them could really explain it. For the most part, they just tried to ignore it. What they didn't know is that their accusations about being watched were correct.

It was near midnight, and all the students were sound asleep in their dorms. A figure sneaked around the courtyard. They were wearing all black and seemed to be rushing out of Auradon. "They've been set," the figure said into some sort of communication device.

"Good," a voice replied from the other end of the communication device. "Now, all we have to do is wait."

"Yeah-wait what? What do you mean wait?"

"You really think those girls are going to find them right now? Godmother's kind of got a thing about curfews. Nobody's gonna be out and about at this hour. They'll find them in the morning. Just be patient."

"Alright." The dark figure then ran as quickly as they could.

Early the next morning, Mal and Ben were walking through the halls. They were doing their daily duties to make sure the school day goes fine for all the students. "Hey, Jane," Mal waved as Jane approached.

"Hey," she replied.

"Is everything ready for Family Day coming up?" Ben asked.

Jane looked on her tablet. "Everything seems to be going according to plan so far."

"Don't get your hopes up just yet," a voice said. It was from Carlos. "I was looking at last night's footage from the security cameras, and there seemed to have been somebody sneaking around campus. From the looks of it, I highly doubt that it was a student."

Ben, Mal, and Jane exchanged worried looks. "I'll go see what's up." Ben began to follow Carlos. "You think you can handle the other duties until I get back?"

Mal nodded. "Um, I believe it's manageable." Ben gave Mal a quick kiss before joining Carlos to see what was really going on.

"So," Jane started, "how are you holding up?"

"Um," Mal began, knowing what Jane was talking about, "I think I've been okay for the most part. Then again, I haven't really gotten a moment to actually get to know Brelyn. I've mostly been quiet, I guess."

"I know what you mean," Jane nodded. "Carlos and I have barely seen Cayla. I heard that Evie, Doug, and Lonnie have had some sort of interaction with their daughters."

"Do you know how those went?"

"From what Audrey told me, Evie was practically crying the moment the girls stepped out of her office. It wasn't a full breakdown, so we don't have to worry about her just yet. Jay also mentioned Lonnie barely made it the entire period she had with Jacey without shedding any tears. She had to let her class go five minutes early so she could recollect herself before the next class came in."

Mal chuckled. "Seems like this is going to be a little harder than we all anticipated." Jane nodded in agreement. "But hey, at least they're here, and they're safe."

Back in the dorm room, Brelyn was packing her backpack while Elaina was in the bathroom. She pushed her purple locks out of her face as she began looking for something. _Where did I put my phone?_ she asked herself. She looked on her desk; it wasn't there. It wasn't on her nightstand either. She tossed the blanket on her bed around, trying to see if maybe it got lost somewhere in the bedding. She was very notorious for doing that.

Brelyn opened the drawer of her part of the dresser; her phone wasn't there either. However, she spotted something there that she had never seen before. It looked like a bracelet. The chain was silver, and it had a pendant in the middle of it. The pendant held an emerald-green gem. She couldn't explain it, but she felt like something was pulling her towards it. She put it on her wrist. Suddenly, she felt this wave come over her.

"Hey." Elaina entered the room wearing a light blue shirt with dark jeans. "You left your phone in the bathroom."

Brelyn snapped out of her trance. "O-Oh. I was just looking for that."

"Come on." Elaina picked up her bag from her bed. "We don't want to be late." Brelyn followed as she threw her phone into her backpack. Both girls exited the room with Brelyn leading. Suddenly, Brelyn came to a stop/ She clutched her head and closed her eyes tightly. "Bre? Are you okay?"

Brelyn opened her eyes slightly. Though one could easily miss it, Elaina noticed a slight green glow to Brelyn's eyes. They turned back to her normal hazel-colored eyes within a couple of seconds. "Y-Yeah. I'm fine." The girls continued their way to class.

Cayla was in biology. She shared this class with Aria. Cayla was glad she and her friends have become friends with Aria, Mary, and Aiden. It made classes where she had with them but not Jacey, Elaina, or Brelyn a little easier.

"You looked stressed," Cayla told Aria.

"I guess I'm a little stressed. My mom and I are helping prepare for the upcoming Family Day."

"Family Day?"

"Oh, that's when-"

"No, no, I know what Family Day is," Cayla interrupted. "I just thought it only came around once a year and also a little later in the year."

"It used to be like that," Aria explained. "We have about four or five Famly Days a year now. I think it was either Jane or Evie who mentioned that we should be able to see out families more than once a year and on holidays."

"Just out of curiosity, do you have to have a family to attend Family Day?"

Aria's heart sank. She didn't show it often, but she felt really bad for Brelyn, Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla. The girls have told the others about a few experiences in the foster system, and Aria couldn't help but want to tell them the truth. Her mother had explained it to her recently, and keeping her mouth shut about it was becoming harder and harder. "Cayla, anyone can go to Family Day. You know, Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos?" Cayla nodded. "They didn't have their parents with them on Family Day."

"Well, I mean, in all honesty, who'd want their parents at Family Day? I don't even think they wanted their own parents there." Aria giggled at Cayla's response.

"Well, what I mean is, they didn't have any immediate family there with them," Aria added. "They had each other. My mom always told me that they would always consider each other family. They had a very strong brother-sister bond. From what I can tell, you, Elaina, Brelyn, and Jacey seem to be more than just best friends. I can tell you see each other as sisters. A bond like that is pretty much all you need for Family Day." Cayla sighed and smiled. It was a really nice sentiment, and she hadn't really given her relationship with the other three much thought. With everything they've been through, they did seem to have more of a sisterly bond.

"Alright, class," the teacher announced. "Please take out your beakers. We will be examining some water we got from the Enchanted Lake."

The class began taking out their beakers. Cayla reached for one at her lab table when she noticed something peculiar; there was something inside the beaker. She turned the beaker over so the object could fall into her hand. The object was a bracelet with a silver chain and pendant in the middle. The pendant had a white-silvery gemstone. Cayla just had this urge to put it on. She quickly put it on her wrist.

Cayla began to walk over to the center of the classroom to get her lake sample. Suddenly, she felt a wave of something come over her. Was it power? Was it whatever she ate for breakfast that morning? The weird wave disappeared just as quickly as it came. "That was weird," she mumbled to herself.

"What was that?" asked Aria.

"O-Oh, nothing."

Elaina was studying hard in chemistry. She had taken many notes on the current lesson they were on. Doug was passing back an exam the class had a couple of days ago. He placed Elaina's test in front of her: A+ it read. She looked back at him and gave him a small smile. He nodded in response.

They weren't doing much in class that day. Elaina had finished all her school work, so she basically had nothing to do. She sat there, tapping the table with her fingers. Elaina was so bored that she started to play with whatever was there right in front of her. She played with her half-apple necklace and then running her finger on the edge of a beaker.

Elaina opened the cabinet that was under the lab table. There was nothing there except for more beakers. _There's gotta be something interesting here_ , Elaina thought to herself. She closed the cabinet and moved on to the drawers. One of the drawers only had rulers and protective goggles. She moved onto the next drawer.

_There's nothing here except stopwatches and- wait_ , Elaina thought to herself. _That wasn't there yesterday..._ She grabbed the object without knowing what it was or who it belonged to. It was a silver-chained bracelet with a pendant in the middle. The pendant had a gemstone that was as red as a ruby. Elaina put it around her worst without even thinking. Suddenly, she began clutching her head the same way Brelyn had this morning. The headache passed quickly. She took off her glasses so she could rub her eyes. When she opened them, she began to see red for a few seconds before it passed quickly. The headache subsided as well. _That was really weird._

Jacey had just finished PE class. Her class was just getting ready to change out of their gym clothes and back into their regular clothes. Jacey talked to Mary as they walked back to the gym. "You're trying out for tourney next week, right?" asked Mary.

"Of course I am!" Jacey exclaimed. Lonnie watched from behind as she smiled at her long lost daughter's happiness. "I've been waiting for an opportunity like this to come for my entire life." The two girls giggled as they entered the girls' locker room.

Jacey walked up to her locker, which had her clothes and backpack inside. It took her two tries to get her locker combination correct before she opened it. The door swung open, and something flew out. Jacey bent down to pick up the object. _I don't remember putting this in my locker_ , she thought, examining the silver-chained bracelet. The pendant in the middle had a yellowish-orange gem on it.

"Get dressed quickly, girls!" Lonnie shouted. "We're running a little behind schedule!"

Jacey snapped out of her trance and quickly put the bracelet on her worst without even thinking. After she got dressed, Jacey and the rest of the girls left the locker room. Jacey and Mary walked together to the courtyard. Suddenly, this weird wave came over Jacey.

"Are you okay?" Mary brought her hand to Jacey's forehead as if she had a fever. "You looked a little sick there for a moment."

"Y-Yeah, I think," Jacey replied. "For a second, I thought I was gonna pass out, but the feeling went away just as fast as it came."

"That's really weird."

"Yeah, it was."

It was now after school. The students had finished classes about two hours ago. Mal, Evie, Doug, Jay, Lonnie, and Jane were all running down the hall.

"So, Jane," Jay started, "why are we going to your mom's office?"

"Carlos sent me a text that he and Ben found something. They brought it up to my mom, and now we're here. It must be pretty important if they brought it up with her." They all came to a halt at the door of Fairy Godmother's office. "What's going on?" Jane asked as they all entered the room. Carlos, Ben, and Fairy Godmother faced the group that had worried looks on their faces.

"There seems to be a problem," Fairy Godmother said calmly with slight distress in her voice.


	12. What to Do

"What do you mean there seems to be a problem?" asked Jane.

"We've been able to track the mysterious figure from last night," Ben stated, "but what we found out could put all of Auradon in danger."

"What do you mean in danger?" Mal asked.

"We watched all the security cameras around the school," Carlos added. "The mysterious figure seemed to have planted four magical gemstones that hold great power in different places in around the school."

"Here's where things get interesting," Fairy Godmother continued. "We tracked the mysterious figure to be from the Isle of the Lost."

Mal's facial expression became full of fear. She looked back at the others. Jay seemed to be shocked, and Evie had a hard time grasping what she had just heard. "How did this person get through the barrier? There's no magic there."

"Actually..." Carlos began.

"Actually what? What do you mean actually?" asked Lonnie.

"You don't mean..." Evie looked toward Carlos, almost as if they were communicated through their eyes. Carlos nodded.

"Does she know?" Jay pointed at Fairy Godmother. Carlos nodded again.

"Does she know what?" asked a confused Jane. "You guys have got to start speaking in full sentences."

"Anybody want to fill us in?" Doug asked, who was equally as confused.

"Before we came to Auradon," Evie began, "Carlos built a machine to get us more TV channels in the Isle since we only had two channels. When he activated it, it punched a hole in the barrier that allowed some magic to make its way into the Isle of the Lost."

"We don't think that hole has ever been patched up." Mal cringed at the memories that resulted from the hole in the barrier.

"With that being said," Fairy Godmother added, "we believe with the little magic that has gotten into the Isle, these gemstones were activated and allowed enough time for one person to escape."

"Where are these gemstones." Jane's fears were starting to come through.

"We were able to track down three of them earlier. One in the biology lab, one in the chemistry lab, and another in the girls' locker room. They're all connected to bracelets. Unfortunately, we weren't able to find the fourth. We sent specialists to retrieve them, but when they got there, they were gone," Ben told everyone.

"Wait, wait, wait," Carlos said, interrupting everyone. He was focused on his computer. "My computer just found all four gems."

"No way," Jay said.

"Yes way," Carlos replied, turning his computer around for all to see. "And look, they're all together."

"That's the girls' dormitory," Lonnie observed.

"Carlos, what room are they in?" asked Evie.

Carlos turned his computer around to look further into things. "Room 731."

"731?" Evie mumbled to herself. "Hey, isn't that our old room?" she asked Mal.

"Oh yeah, it is."

Jane suddenly gasped. Everybody drew their attention to her. "What is it?" Lonnie asked.

"That's Brelyn and Elaina's room," she slowly said. "And if they have two of the gems, then I can guess who has the other two."

"So all four of the girls have a gem? So much for keeping them safe," Jay said. "I knew this was going to fall apart."

"Hey!" Mal retorted. "You agreed to it."

"We can't send them away!" Evie exclaimed, remembering a possible outcome if the girls were ever in danger.

"I don't think that will happen," Doug comforted his wife. "If they have the gems, then that means they'll be tracked."

"Anyway," Ben began, "we have to find a way to get the gems from the girls."

"We can't just ask them to give the bracelets to us?" Lonnie questioned. "They'll start questioning things, and as far as they know, they're just normal bracelets."

"Magic exists everywhere except the Isle," Doug brought up. "Why can't we explain to them that the bracelets hold dangerous gems from the Isle."

"It's not that easy," Mal explained. "If these gems are the gems I've read about back when we were on the Isle, the gems will take over their minds, and they'll be defensive when being asked about it."

"So, what do you suggest we do?" asked Carlos.

"We have to somehow get those bracelets away from them because if we don't, we would be putting them and all of Auradon in danger."


	13. Trouble's Brewing

The tourney tryouts came very quickly. Jacey and Mary made their way to the field excitedly. Both girls have been waiting for this day since school started. "Can you believe it?" Mary had a hard time containing that excitement. "Tryouts are finally here."

"I know, I'm so excited," Jacey replied. When the girls arrived at the field, they realized they were the only girls who were there to try out. "I wish more girls would see that there is more to life than just being a princess. I mean, no offense to them, but I just now that there are a ton of girls who would love to play this sport."

"I agree," Mary replied. Mary then noticed something. "Hey, Jacey," she said, getting Jacey's attention, "aren't you going to take your bracelet off?"

Jacey looked down at her wrist; she didn't realize she was still wearing it. "Why would I take it off?"

"Because we're about to play a very physical sport." Mary was very confused by Jacey's sudden defensive attitude. "It's probably safer to play without any jewelry." At that moment, Mary could've sword she saw Jacey's brown eyes glow a golden color. It only lasted a second, so she didn't question any further.

"I-I'm just keeping it on as a good luck charm."

"Okay..."

"Hey, guys," Aiden said, approaching the girls.

"Hi, Aiden," Jacey said with a smile and a more happy tone. "You're trying out for tourney?"

"Yep," Aiden replied. "My dad is pretty good friends with the coach, so he said I should try out for the team."

"Who's the coach?"

"Jay. You know with my dad's dad being Aladdin and Jay's dad being Jafar, they made amends with each other when the VKS chose good over evil. Now, Jay and my father are great friends."

A whistle was then blown. "Okay, team!" Jay yelled from the middle of the field. "Let's get these tryouts started!" The ten huddled in the center as the rules were explained to them. "Now, as you can see," Jay motioned to the girls, "we have two girls trying out this year." Both Jacey and Mary gave the team prideful smiles. "I expect you all to not treat them like anything less than everybody else on the team."

After more explanations, they were divided up to play against each other. Jacey put her mask on as she prepared herself. It was a rush for her. She felt free while on the field. Jay watched Jacey play; he could tell she was going to be a valuable player on the team. He smiled as he watched his long lost daughter play the game that first introduced him to the meaning of being a team and a family.

Sometime during one of the games, Jacey avoided getting caught in the kill zone, but she tripped over herself. A player that she was playing against had watched the whole thing play out laughed from behind her. "Maybe tourney isn't your thing," he said. "Maybe you should just give up on this ridiculous thought. Maybe you should try being a prissy princess just like every other girl at this school." He laughed as he ran off.

Jacey was mad. Not because she fell, but because the boy's comment made her blood boil. Suddenly, the gem on her bracelet began glowing. The golden glow in her eyes came back as well. Jacey picked herself up and began running. She held the tourney stick tightly and headed for that boy since he currently had the ball. As she caught up to him, she threw her shoulder towards him, knocking him off balance. He fell, and the ball fell out of his tourney stick. Jacey picked up the ball and began running.

Other players playing against her tried to do the same, but she easily deflected them. The goal was right there. She threw the ball in the air and smacked it towards the goal. She had just scored. Jay blew his whistle. "Good game!" That's it for today. Rosters will be posted shortly!"

Jacey's gem stopped glowing just as her eyes did. She began breathing heavily; the wave of anger she felt from the boy's comment suddenly, disappeared. She took off her helmet so she could breathe better.

"That was amazing!" Mary came running over to Jacey.

"Yeah," Aiden replied, running over as well. "I've never seen a girl play like that before. I don't think I've ever seen any tourney player play the way you did. Jay is definitely gonna put you on the team now!"

The boy that made the comment was behind the group. Jacy noticed this. "Now, what was your comment about being a prissy princess?" she asked confidently. The boy ignored her comment and walked off.

"Don't let him bother you," a voice said. The group turned to face a tall, blonde-haired boy. "Hey, aren't you one of my sister's friends?" he asked.

"Um, who is your sister exactly?" Jacey asked.

"Aria. I'm Chad Jr., but you can just call me Junior. Everybody does." Jacey nodded in response. "I'm the captain this year. That kid is just being salty Coach didn't choose him." Jacey nodded once more. "Just come talk t me if you have any questions or need training tips. You have some potential."

"I'll keep that in mind," Jacey replied. Junior nodded as he walked towards the locker rooms.

"Hey," another voice called. It was Jay. "You rocked it out there on the field."

"So I've been told," Jacey replied. Jacey began walking in her own direction. Jay watched her leave as he felt the warm feeling in his heart return. She's the best daughter ever.

Elaina sat in chemistry once more. She was working on her worksheet about stoichiometry. While many people struggled with this, it came very easily to Elaina. Doug was passing back another exam. "Nice job," he told Elaina as he passed back her test. It read 42/45 at the top. Elaina nodded at her score; she was happy with it.

"Would you look at that," the student next to her teased. "Looks like teacher's little pet didn't get a perfect score."

"No one can be perfect all the time," Elaina told the student.

"I guess you're right. I guess that's why your parents gave you up."

"Excuse me!?" Elaina replied.

"I mean, I guess you just weren't what your real parents wanted. I guess that explains why no one adopted you as well."

"T-That's not t-true," Elaina stuttered. Suddenly, her gem began glowing a bright red color. Her eyes began glowing in the same color. A ton of emotions began to overtake her body. Elaina couldn't help it; she felt sadness and anger all at once. Tears began rolling from her eyes. Elaina rubbed her eyes from under her glasses.

"Oh, what's wrong?" the student said with a slight mock pout. "You want me to go get mommy and daddy for you? Oh, wait!" The student began laughing. The tears would not stop dripping down Elaina's face. She tried hard to stop it, but she was unable to stop the tears.

"Okay, that's enough," Doug caught eye of the situation. "Elaina, you want to go to the bathroom and recollect yourself?" Elaina nodded and got up from her seat.

Once in the bathroom, she took her glasses off and buried her face into her hands. She didn't know why she was getting so emotional over the student's comments. Kids at the orphanage have said worse. She's heard it from foster siblings who were the real kids of foster parents. Heck, she's even heard it from foster parents. Elaina looked at herself in the mirror and noticed the red glow in her eyes. She breathed deeply. The red glow had gone away, and her eyes returned back to their dark-brown selves. Once all the tears were gone, she put her glasses back on and headed back to class.

Elaina returned to her seat and did not look at the student next to her. The student gave Elaina a sly look. This gave her the sign that they were not sorry for what they had said to her. She could tell they'd happily say more if Doug hadn't caught them. The bracelet began glowing again. Almost on impulse, Elaina grabbed the student's pencil and broke it in half. The student was very confused by Elaina's action, but what they didn't know was that Elaina was equally confused.

Cayla sat in her biology class with Aria. They were doing presentations. Cayla was very nervous when talking in front of people. The teacher had already made the list of the order the students were presenting in. As the list got closer to Cayla's name, her heart began beating very fast. She could have sworn that the entire class could hear every single beat of her heart. Beads of sweat began to fall from her head. Cayla tried to calm herself by breathing slowly, but she could still feel the anxiety attack coming.

The student scheduled to present right before her was called. Cayla didn't know why, but she felt more nervous than she usually does. She thought she had gotten better with this when she was younger. Yes, talking in front of the class still terrified her, but she was usually fine by the rime she was up there.

"Cayla," the teacher called out, "you're up."

Cayla got up from her seat and headed to the front of the class slowly. She breathed deeply with every step. She looked down at her bracelet; it began to glow. This made Cayla both confused and even more nervous. She hoped nobody would see her glowing bracelet.

Cayla thought she would be fine during her presentation, but she was not. She stuttered a lot, and she practically forgot all the information she had prepared for this presentation. Aria seemed to notice that something was wrong with Cayla. Cayla couldn't take it anymore. She felt like everybody in her class was laughing at her. She ran out of the class and towards the bathroom.

She ran as fast as she could until she reached the bathroom. Cayla could tell she was fully in the middle of an anxiety attack. She tried to get her breathing under control the way the therapist at the orphanage had taught her to when she was younger. Slowly, but surely, Cayla's breathing started to become controlled and her heart rate slowed.

The door to the bathroom opened to reveal Aria. "Hey, are you okay."

"Yeah," Cayla said with a shaky voice. "I don't know what happened. I was way more terrified to talk. It was so bad to the point where I was unable to speak."

"Seemed like you were in the midst of an anxiety attack or something."

"I used to have them a lot when I was younger, but they didn't happen as often after I turned ten," Cayla explained. "Wait, how'd you know?"

"Because I suffer from them quite a lot," Aria admitted. "Both my parents come from very prestigious and royal families. I've been in the spotlight literally since birth. Growing up in that spotlight messed me up as a kid, so it caused me to have really bad anxiety, but I've gotten control over it as I got older."

Cayla chuckled. "I guess it's nice to know I'm not the only one that deals with this. I know Elaina shows signs of it as well, but she was never really treated for it the same way I was when we were kids."

"If you ever need an adult to talk about it to, I know King Ben and Evie have anxiety as well. I've talked to both of them in the past, and they have helped me a lot."

"I'll think about it."

Aria looked into Cayla's blue eyes. "You know," she began, "your eyes seemed to be glowing white back there."

"Really?" Aria nodded. "This is so weird. For the past week, I feel like I haven't been myself."

"Hey," Aria began, "Family Day is this weekend. I'm sure you'll be fine by then."

"I hope. I don't know what I'm gonna do if I keep acting like this."

Brelyn sat in her art class. They were painting, and it was really relaxing for her. Ever since she was little, she had enjoyed anything that had to do with art and drawing. Brelyn wasn't quite sure what she was painting. She was kind of just painting whatever. From what it looked like, she was painting a green heart that was made of fire with a purple background.

Suddenly, her bracelet started glowing green. She looked at it with a confused expression. _Why is it doing that?_ she asked herself. It was the second time that day that it had started glowing. She wasn't quite sure why this was happening. The first time was during second period.

The rest of the day, Brelyn couldn't stop thinking about reasons why her bracelet was glowing. Brelyn headed back to her dorm.

"Hey." Elaina was sitting at her desk while doing homework.

"Hey." Brelyn flopped right onto her bed.

"Stressful day?"

"I guess," Brelyn replied. "My bracelet started glowing while in Magical History and then again in Art Class."

"Wait." Elaina was now focused on Brelyn. "You have Magical History during second period right?" Brelyn nodded. "My bracelet started glowing during Chemistry."

"Which is your second period." Brelyn was starting to put pieces together in her head. "Did anything happen with your bracelet during fourth period?"

Elaina nodded. "The only thing is that during Chemistry, I had some sort of reaction. I saw this red glow in my eyes, which is the color my bracelet glowed. However, during fourth period, I didn't have any kind of reaction."

"I didn't have any kind of reaction at all to either of the moments mine glowed." Brelyn sighed. She was about to say something when, suddenly, her bracelet began glowing again. Elaina looked down at her bracelet to see if it was glowing; it was. "Now that's really weird."


	14. Nightmares

Brelyn's body shot up as she woke herself up. She was breathing heavily and quickly; she was in a cold sweat. She woke up from a terrible nightmare. She began wiping the tears that were falling down her face. She felt her heart beating at a very fast rate. Brelyn began to take control of her breathing. Her breathing slowed as did her heart rate.

She began to notice that her bracelet glowing. _Really? Again?_ she thought to herself. She checked the time on her phone. It read 4:45. She looked out the window. It was still dark.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Brelyn got up to answer the door. She was surprised to see both Jacey and Cayla at the door. "Brelyn, we have a problem," Cayla said.

"What's going on?" Brelyn noticed the scared looks in both of the girls' faces.

"Look." Jacey pointed at both of their bracelets. They were glowing as well. "We both just woke up from nightmares. It was so weird."

"The same thing just happened to me." Elaina started moving in her bed. She mumbled something, but the girls weren't able to make out what she was saying. "Oh, sorry Elaina. I didn't mean to wake you-"

"Wait," Cayla whispered. "I think she's still sleeping. Remember, she has a tendency to talk in her sleep once in a while."

"Look." Jacey pointed at Elaina. There was a red glow coming from Elaina's bed. "Her bracelet is beginning to glow."

"Don't go," Elaina said in her sleep. "Don't go," she said a little louder.

"I think she's having a nightmare," Cayla said. "That's what happened to us."

"Should we wake her?"

"Don't go!" Elaina's body shot up. She began breathing heavily just as Brelyn had been doing. Her eyes darted around the room as she was brought back into reality. Unlike Brelyn, who only had a few tears, Elaina's tears streamed down like a waterfall. Brelyn, Jacey, and Cayla ran over to comfort their terrified friend. Elaina cried into Brelyn's chest. Brelyn looked down at Elaina's wrist as the bracelet continued to glow. Elaina's eyes began to glow as well.

"Ssh," Brelyn comforted. "Everything's going to be okay. Nobody's leaving you. We're right here. We promise we won't leave you."

Elaina's sobs slowly came to a stop. Her breathing became slow and clear. "You okay?" Cayla asked with a comforting tone. Elaina nodded.

It was very difficult for the girls to fall back asleep. The dreams they all have experienced kept the gears in their heads moving. Thy hung out in Brelyn and Elaina's room.

The sun soon came up, and the girls got ready for the day ahead of them. The tiredness from the night before finally hit them while they were in class. Brelyn was in Magical History when she began to fall asleep. Her head fell hard onto the table; that definitely woke her up a bit. "Are you okay, Brelyn?" asked the teacher: Fairy Godmother.

"Y-Yeah. I'm fine. Just didn't get much sleep last night," Brelyn stuttered.

Fairy Godmother continued to teach the class, but she still worried about Brelyn. She knew something was up. She noticed the bracelet around Brelyn's wrist. _Ah, that explains some things_ she thought to herself.

The class soon ended, and the students all shuffled to their next class. Fairy Godmother watched Brelyn as she met up with one of her friends. Suddenly, Fairy Godmother's heart dropped when she saw who Brelyn was talking to: it was Cayla. Fairy Godmother covered her heart with her hand. Her granddaughter was standing right there across the hall. She looked just like Jane just with freckles.

It was then that Fairy Godmother noticed that Cayla looked just as tired as Brelyn did. "Bye, Brelyn," Cayla said. "Got to get to History of Auradon." Cayla walked towards her classroom rubbing her eyes.

Fairy Godmother sighed as she watched her granddaughter tiredly made her way to her next class. It was hard to watch her and the other three girls suffer the way they were and not be able to do anything about it.

Cayla took her seat in her third period class before totally knocking out right on the desk. Suddenly, Cayla felt a light tap on her shoulder. She lifted her head as her eyes adjusted to the hard light of reality. She then adjusted herself so that she was sitting up straight and ready to learn.

"You look like you didn't sleep much last night," the teacher told Cayla. "You wanna-"

"No, no," Cayla interrupted. "I'm good. I can stay up now."

"Okay..."

Cayla was able to stay up the entire class, but it was not easy for her at all. _How am I supposed to stay up for four more classes?_

Jacey sat in her fifth period Algebra I class. She couldn't focus on the lesson because of how much sleep she didn't get. Jacey looked across the room to where Brelyn was sitting; Brelyn didn't look much better than she did. She wished the teacher wasn't so strict on seating arrangements. That way, she and Brelyn could discuss what the heck is going on.

Jacey tapped each end of her pencil on her notebook. Her eyes would drop shut before she would shoot her head back up. She would rub her eyes every so often to make the tired itch go away. She tried her best to look as awake as she could. She didn't want the teacher being worried about her like her four previous teachers, with Lonnie being the most worried. Jacey found in interesting that Lonnie cared for her that much.

Jacey looked back at Brelyn. Her head was laying on the desk. Jacey shifted herself so that she could see past Brelyn's purple hair. Brelyn's eyes were closed, indicating she had fallen asleep. _Well, might as well catch some Zs too._ Jacey flowers her head onto the desk as she drifted off to sleep.

Elaina wasn't much better than the other three. It was now seventh period: the last class of the day. She was surprised by how she was able to last that long. Some teachers even had told her that she could drift off for a little bit if she really needed to. Her teacher for her current class, Safety Rules For the Internet, has asked her if she would like to take a little nap. Of course, Elaina declined.

The truth was Elaina was avoiding falling asleep. Not because she didn't want to make it seem like she didn't appreciate learning, but she didn't want to experience that horrific nightmare she had experienced the night before. Her heart ached at just the thought of it. Just then, Elaina could have sworn she saw her bracelet glow, but it must have been too quick for her to catch it.

Once school was over, the girls gathered in Brelyn and Elaina's dorm once again. They discussed how they all couldn't focus on school because they were so tired. Elaina mentioned her fear of falling asleep and getting that same dream.

"Maybe we're just doing this to ourselves," Jacey said. "Remember when we first got here? We were all paranoid. Maybe it's just the same thing."

"I hope you're right," Brelyn replied.

"Of course I am," Jacey said proudly. "I'm sure those nightmares won't come back."

Unfortunately, she was wrong. Boy was she wrong. The nightmares continued to take hold of each girl's mind at night. Eveyr night, they got less sleep. None of them knew how to stop them. A couple of the teachers, including Lonnie and Doug, had found out about these nightmares. They had brought i up to Fairy Godmother, Ben, and Mal. Luckily, they all knew the cause of these horrid dreams.


	15. The Failed Plan

Fairy Godmother had called a meeting with Mal, Ben, Evie, Doug, Jay, Lonnie, Carlos, and Jane. They needed to discuss the current events that were happening and what to do about them.

"What do you expect us to do, mom?" Jane stressed. "Like Mal said. It will be very difficult to get those bracelets away from the girls. The gems have control over their minds. They'll be defensive if we asked about the gems. There's no way we can just ask them to give us the bracelets."

"And it's not like we can take the bracelets by force," Evie added.

"I mean, we could." Mal looked towards the ceiling. Evie gave her a concerned look. "What? I wasn't suggesting we do that. I was just saying that if we really wanted to, we could take the bracelets by force."

"Anyways," Ben began, "the point is, we have to find a way to get the bracelets away from the girls without them finding out there's some sort of dangerous magic in them."

"There's something else we need to discuss," Fairy Godmother said. Everybody in the room drew their attention to her. "I'm sure you all have noticed that the girls have been getting a lack of sleep that has been caused by nightmares."

Doug and Lonnie both nodded as both of them have noticed. "Elaina hasn't been paying much attention in class," Doug mentioned. "She still does great, but she just looks like she hasn't gotten any sleep in like three days."

"I bet she hasn't really slept for three days," Jane added. "I've seen Cayla around campus, and she looks like that as well."

"Jacey looks like she hasn't really slept either," Lonnie added. "She's not running as fast, and she's losing her breath a lot faster than usual."

Fairy Godmother added, "And Brelyn has fallen asleep in my Magical History class a couple of times."

"What if we just talk to them?" Evie mentioned. "Maybe if we try and get to know them a bit, then we can maybe get the bracelets with the gems away from them."

"I mean, I guess that might work," Carlos said. "I would really like to spend time with Cayla."

"Same with Jacey," Jay added.

"Then it's settled," Ben said. "Spend time with the girls, and maybe they will give us the bracelets. Just remember, no mention of being their parents. We still don't know if it's safe enough to do so." The others nodded as they hung their heads low.

The next day was no different for the four girls. They still were getting barely any sleep because of the nightmares. Elaina sat in her chemistry class once more. Of all the classes she had, chemistry was probably her favorite. She was able to stay awake in this class at least.

Evie decided to sit in during this class. She watched Elaina as she worked hard in class. Doug had told her about how much more advanced Elaina was compared to the other kids who were two to four years older than her. It reminded Evie of when she was in high school, and chemistry had taught her that she could be much more than a pretty face. She was glad her daughter was embracing her intelligence.

"Just how smart is she?" Evie asked Doug.

"Just watch." Doug gave her a grin before getting Elaina's attention. "Elaina? How do you find the atomic weight of silver?" Evie smiled as she knew what her husband was referring to.

Elaina walked up to the board to write the answer. "That would be (106.904 x .5200) + (108.905 x .4800), which, Doug, would give us 107.9 a.m.u."

Doug gave Evie a smile. "And she did that without a magic mirror," he whispered. Evie chuckled at Doug's remark. "And she pronounced a.m.u. correctly." Evie lightly smacked his arm. "Amu?" Doug teased.

"Would you stop," Evie laughed.

"Go talk to her."

"Now?"

"Yes, now. I see her every day. I've talked to her a ton already. You should really get to know her."

"I don't know," Evie whispered. 

Doug could see the nervousness and hesitation in Evie's eyes. "She doesn't know who exactly you are. She won't have any hard feelings towards you. I promise."

"Okay." Evie walked towards where Elaina was sitting. She sat at the lab table so she was facing Elaina. "So, you seem pretty smart."

Elaina tiredly looked up at Evie. There was something about her that made Elaina smile. "I-I'm not that smart." Elaina rubbed the tiredness from her eyes quickly.

"Don't be bashful." Evie sat in the chair beside Elaina. "I would've needed some sort of magic mirror to solve the problem you just did off the top of your head." Evie giggled at Evie's remark while Doug chuckled as he walked by. Evie gave him a small smirk. Evie wasn't sure exactly what to talk about, so she just said the first thing that came to mind. "How long have you been wearing glasses?"

"Um." Elaina thought about it. "I think I was either four or five years old. I would have just been starting kindergarten at the time, and the heads of the orphanage noticed that I couldn't see very well. Actually, it was a foster home that noticed first, but I got sent back to the orphanage before I was sent to the doctor."

Whenever Elaina mentioned being sent back from faster homes, Evie felt her heart clench. She wanted to change the subject quickly. "What about your blue hair?" Evie asked, despite knowing the answer. 

"My hair is naturally blue," Elaina replied. "Brelyn's hair is also naturally purple. Because of this, we used to get teased a lot at the orphanage and in foster homes. I mean, I like the way my hair looks, but other kids had other ideas. I took the teasing pretty hard. I remember just last year I thought about dying it brown. Brelyn talked me out of it though."

Evie grabbed Elaina's hands. Elaina wasn't really sure what was going on, but she felt a wave of comfort come over her. "Hey," Evie started, "it never bothered me." She motioned to her own blue hair. "You just gotta embrace who you really are. Don't worry what others say about you." Elaina looked down into her lap as she gave a small giggle. She didn't know why she felt so comfortable around Evie, but she really enjoyed it.

Cayla sat in her Safety Rules for the Internet class. They weren't doing anything because they were having technical difficulties. The teacher was pretty laid back, so they allowed the students to be on their phones during class. Cayla sat in her seat and watched videos. Carlos had been in the classroom to help with the technical difficulties, but he drew his attention to Cayla instead.

"Hey," he said, getting Cayla's attention. "I'm Carlos. I'm in charge of pretty much everything electronic at this school."

Cayla shifted her position so that she was sitting up straight and took her earbuds out of her ears. "H-Hi. I'm Cayla. I'm one of the foster kids that King Ben invited."

"I've heard about you," Carlos replied. "You also must be familiar with my wife. I'm married to Jane."

Cayla nodded in response. Carlos stood there as an awkward silence occurred. He hadn't planned what he was going to talk about with Cayla. "So, do you like dogs?" He honestly didn't know where he was going with this.

"I've actually never come into contact with a dog in a really long time. I think the last time was at a foster home when I was six or seven years old."

Carlos was surprised. He himself had never came into contact with an actual dog until he was fourteen, but that was because he lived on the Isle of the Lost. The orphanage wasn't that far from the capital city of Auradon, so he had assumed they had dogs at the orphanage or at least around it. "Really? You've never seen a dog?"

Cayla shook her head. "Well, like I said, a foster home I had when I was little had a dog, but I wasn't there for a really long time. I've seen dogs from a distance, but I haven't seen one up close in a long time. Are they really as cute and cuddly as everybody says they are?" she asked with a little excitement in her voice.

Carlos sat in the empty desk next to Cayla. "Most are. I know my three are."

"You have three dogs?"

"Yep," Carlos replied happily. "My first dog is named Dude. He was the campus mutt, but once I graduated, they said I could take him with me. Good thing that Auradon came up with a way for animals to live longer lives. When Jane and I got married, we got another dog that we named Lily. Not too long ago, they had a puppy that we named Daisy."

"That's so cool," Cayla said.

Carlos and Cayla talked for the remainder of the class. Carlos enjoyed every second he had to spend with his daughter. _She really is like a mini Jane,_ he thought to himself. There were moments where he could see himself in Cayla, but most of it was Jane. That didn't bother him. He actually was glad she turned out to be more like Jane than him. From the hair to the blue eyes, Carlos could not stop smiling at the daughter he had lost thirteen years ago.

The bell rang, and students began shuffling out of the classroom. "I've got to get to Biology," Cayla told Carlos. "Nice meeting you though."

"Yeah, you too." Carlos watched as his daughter got up from her seat. She waved and gave him a smile before leaving the classroom _She's perfect,_ he thought to himself.

Brelyn sat in Art class once more. "Why hello, Queen Mal," she heard the teacher say, Brelyn turned around to face the door; Mal was standing right there. "What brings you here?"

"I actually just came to observe the class." Mal glanced around the room, taking in each and every student that was in the class. "Nothing special." The teacher nodded as Mal walked around the room.

The class was a little less rowdy than what it usually was. _The Queen's presence really changes a person,_ Brelyn thought to herself as she continued drawing. Brelyn was in her zone. She wasn't quite sure what she was drawing, but she's seen it before.

Mal had approached the table where Brelyn was sitting and took a seat. Brelyn jumped slightly, being brought back to reality. "Oh, I'm sorry," Mal apologized. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, no." Brelyn shook her head. "You're good." Brelyn went back to drawing.

If it had been anybody else, they would have gone crazy that the Queen sat next to her. For Brelyn, she didn't know why, but she felt sort of comfortable around Mal. It was like she had known her before. For Mal, she was actually glad Brelyn had acted calmly. She looked over at what Brelyn was doing. "What are you drawing, if you don't mind me asking?"

Brelyn shifted the paper over to Mal. "I'm not quite sure. I saw it in a dream one night."

"In one of your nightmares?"

"How do you know about the nightmares?" Brelyn's face showed confusion and worry all at the same time.

"Nevermind. Please continue."

"Anyways, I saw it in a dream awhile ago. It's a battle in the ocean. The battle is between a purple dragon and a sea witch. You know, like Ursula. I don't remember much about the dream because most of time, it seems like a blur. I can't see really see any clear faces. The only thing that seems clear is this battle happening," Brelyn explained.

Mal looked at the drawing in amazement. The drawing brought back a memory from about six months after she and her friends had first come to Auradon. She passed the drawing back to Brelyn before picking up a piece of paper and pencil herself. In less than five minutes, Mal had a full-blown sketch in front of her.

"Woah!" Brelyn took notice of the drawing. "You're really good at drawing." Brelyn gave Mal a smile, which made Mal smile back. "How long have you been doing art?"

"It was kind of just a hobby I had back on the Isle. It was a good way for me to relax. I didn't do it much except for when I graffitied my _Long Live Evil_ insignias all over the Isle. I remember when I first came to Auradon, I had spray painted my insignia on my locker. After that, your da-" Mal had to stop herself before continuing. She couldn't believe she was bout to low it. "Um, King Ben suggested I take Art class. I did, and I loved it. In fact, I think I sat right where you're sitting now."

"Really?"

Mal nodded. "What about you? When did you start doing art?"

Brelyn thought about it for a second. "I was very little when I found a love for art and drawing. The orphanage would always have arts and crafts for the little kids. I always did mine with Elaina. I just loved creating. I think I was around six or so when it finally clicked. They had an art class taught at the orphanage. It was meant for the older kids, but the head of the orphanage thought I'd love it. She turned out to be right. As I got older, I found relaxation in drawing. I have a ton of sketchbooks full of drawings in my room. I made sure to grab every single one before leaving the orphanage."

Mal and Brelyn continued to talk about their love of art until the class ended. Mal even walked with Brelyn until they reached her next class. 'Well, it was really nice getting to know you. It's not every day I actually get to know the people my husband and I rule over." Brelyn nodded and gave Mal a warm smile before entering her next class.

Jacey headed out to the field for the first tourney practice. She walked proudly as one of two girls on the team. "Hey, Coach!" Jacey said to Jay as she approached.

"Hey," he replied. "Are you ready fr today?"

"Yep," Jacey responded. The rest of the team came, and they began practice. Most of it had to do with core strengthening and muscle building. Though this was difficult for many of the players, it wasn't that hard for Jacey.

Through every pushup and every sit up, Jacey kept her head high and didn't show any sign of weakness. The only time she seemed soft was when Aiden was talking to her. She seemed to calm down only for him. Jacey was able to be on good terms wither all of the older guys on the team. Some guys would comment on her tourney skills while others patted her on the head.

Practice soon came to an end, and Jacey went to get her gym bag and water. She tore her helmet off and flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Nice practice," Jay said from behind.

He had startled Jacey a bit, and she looked like she was ready to attack. "Oh, it's just you." She covered her heart, feeling her quickened heartbeat.

"Note to self: don't scare Jacey because she will attack."

"Sorry," Jacey replied. "Force of habit. My first instinct is to protect myself."

Jay laughed as he put his arm around Jacey. For whatever reason, Jacey felt very comfortable when he did that. Jay and Jacey talked all about tourney up until they reached the dorm rooms. "Have you ever thought about trying out for R.O.A.R.? when that season starts? My wife, Lonnie, is the coach."

"I actually do plan on trying out," Jacey replied. Jay smiled. He was glad Jacey loved sports just as much as he and Lonnie did. She really was their daughter. "Well," Jacey began, "I better be going up to my room. I've got to take a shower and get a whole bunch of homework done."

"You do that," Jay said. "Bye." Jacey waved before heading into the dorm building.

Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos all walked the halls together. Each one gushed over how much they loved their respective daughter. None of them could really grasp the fact that their daughters were right there. After so many years, they were so happy the decision to invite the girls to Auradon Prep was made.

Suddenly, Mal's smile dropped to a frown. Evie was the first to notice. "What's wrong, M?"

"I almost slipped up," Mal told them. "I almost told Brelyn I was her mom. Well, technically, I almost said Ben was her dad, which would translate to me being her mom. I'm just glad I could avoid it, and she didn't seem to notice my slip up." The four of them continued to talk about their daughters as they approached Fairy Godmother's office where she, Jane, Lonnie, Doug, and Ben were waiting.

"So," Fairy Godmother began. "Were any of you able to get the bracelets away from the girls?"

Suddenly, Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos' faces became shocked ones. They totally forgot about the plan to get the bracelets away from the girls. All four of their faces became bright red.

"I'm going to take that as a no," Doug stated.

"We just got so caught up in getting to know the girls and spending time with them," Evie explained. "I guess we just forgot the plan in the process." The four of them hung their heads in shame.

"You guys do realize all of Auradon is at stake, right?" Ben asked with a very small amount of anger. "We can't just stand here, wasting time-"

"Ben!" Mal shouted. Almost everybody in that room became silent. "These girls have spent their lives thinking they were unloved and unwanted! For their entire lives, they've been bounced around foster homes and the orphanage. They are finally getting a normal life! None of them know they have dangerous artifacts from the Isle. They've been experiencing nightmares ever night as well. Can't we just give them time to have a normal life and not worry about anything?"

The entire room fell silent as none of them really knew what to do after failing their first plan.


	16. If Only

The four girls left the form room together after another sleepless night. Their bodies had adjusted to the lack of sleep, so they didn't look as tired as they did the first couple of nights; however, it wasn't that difficult to tell that the less sleep was taking a toll on them mentally.

Brelyn walked into her Grammar class. She was greeted by a happy Aria before taking her seat. Brelyn was glad she had gotten used to the lack of sleep. She didn't feel like falling asleep in class every five seconds.

In the middle of class, Brelyn felt a little different. She couldn't really explain it, but she felt a little... off. It was like there was something coursing through her body that wasn't there before. Brelyn started a conversation when Aria had noticed her change in demeanor.

"Your eyes do look a little greener than usual," Aria told her. "Like they look more of a lime green color." She seemed to be a little concerned for her friend but didn't show it a lot because she didn't want to frighten Brelyn.

"Are they?" Brelyn looked at her phone at her reflection. It was true; her eyes seemed to be more saturated than their normal hazel color. There was a green glare on the phone, which indicated that they were glowing. Brelyn discreetly looked at her bracelet. However, the gem on the bracelet was not glowing like it did when her eyes glowed. _Weird_ , she thought to herself.

"Okay, class," the teacher said, "we will be silent reading for a while."

Brelyn was pretty neutral with reading, but she really wasn't in the mood for it today. So many things were on her mind, that she couldn't really focus on school work. _I wish I was able to read really fast_ , she thought to herself once more. She placed her hand on the book cover before opening. Suddenly, she felt a surge of something run through her body. This is just getting weirder and weirder every minute. She opened the book and turned to the page she was supposed to be reading.

After reading for a couple of minutes, Brelyn looked at the book in confusion. She turned around to face Aria. "Hey, didn't we already read this?"

"I don't think so." Aria shook her head. "This is all new to me. Maybe you just read ahead."

"But I never read ahead," Brelyn replied. "I do well in school, but I'm no the type of person who likes to get work done so far ahead."

"Maybe Elaina read ahead, and she discussed what the content of it was to you. Maybe you weren't paying attention, but the information still stuck with you. The human brain works in very mysterious ways, you know."

"Maybe," Brelyn said, turning back to face the front. This is all really weird. It's like I was able to retain information I haven't even read yet.

* * *

Brelyn couldn't stop thinking about everything she was feeling during first period. It bothered her that she didn't know why she was feeling the way she was. It couldn't be the gem because it wasn't glowing when her eyes glowed. Was there another reason as to why her eyes were glowing green? Brelyn tried to shake it off as she entered Magical History. She had hoped Art class would come quickly, so she could relax and forget about it.

"Now," Fairy Godmother began, "Wehn somebody possesses any kind of magic, they have magic surging through their body the same way your blood does. While mortals feel content, people who possess magic always have that feeling of magic flowing through their bodies. It's a part of them."

"Do you feel like that?" a curios student asked.

"I used to feel it," Fairy Godmother answered. "As I grew older, my body grew used to the feeling. Now, I can barely feel a thing. Sure, once in a while, the magic grows stronger for a little bit, but other than that, I feel just as content as any other mortal."

The class then moved on to doing individual work. Something that Brelyn does to help her concentrate is to snap her fingers or tap on the desk. Brelyn would snap her fingers quietly every few seconds as she worked. Suddenly, she saw green sparks come from her fingers. _What the heck?_ She thought her eyes glowing green when were bracelet wasn't was weird; this was even weirder. She snapped her fingers once more. As expected, green sparks appeared. It scared her a little. She felt the feeling she felt earlier. _What is happening to me?_ Brelyn's fear began to grow even more.

"Brelyn?" Fairy Godmother said, trying to get the girl's attention. This startled her for a second. "Are you okay?"

Brelyn's fear only bubbled up more inside of her. She didn't know what she was feeling. She was feeling scared and overwhelmed, and she didn't know how to make the build-up stop. Brelyn was about to answer back when suddenly a green beam shot out from her hand. It shot another student across the room. Luckily, the student wasn't hurt. Neither Fairy Godmother nor the student was mad at Brelyn. The student, along with everyone in the class, gave her a concerned look.

Brelyn breathed heavily. She had no idea what was going on. Without thinking, Brelyn jumped from her seat and ran out of the classroom. She ran to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror. For the first time in her life, she saw, not so much fear within herself, but a fear of herself. _Why is this happening to me?_

* * *

She had completely shut everyone out. Brelyn wouldn't talk to anyone and would just keep everything to herself. Her friends began to worry about her. Once school ended, Brelyn walked towards the bathroom. Elaina had followed her.

"Hey," Elaina called out. Her face showed true concern for her friend. "You didn't show up at lunch today. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Brelyn replied harshly.

Elaina was taken back by her response. "Bre, this doesn't sound like you. Jacey, Cayla, and I are really worried about you."

"Well, don't be worried. As I said, I'm fine." Brelyn kept her hands clenched to her side. The power inside was building up. She was getting stressed, and she didn't want to shoot another magical beam from her hands.

Elaina stepped forward slowly. "We're here for you-"

"Don't-" Brelyn began backing up as her friend advanced. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Hurt me?" Elaina was confused as to where Brelyn was coming from. "Brelyn, why would you hurt me? I just want to make sure you're not hurt in any way. I'm only trying to help you-"

"Please, just go!" Brelyn finally shouted. Tears were threatening to fall. "Please, just leave me alone."

"Okay." Elaina sighed, giving in. Brelyn could see tears begin to form in her eyes. Elaina walked out of the bathroom in defeat.

Brelyn turned around to face herself in the mirror. She couldn't believe she just drove her best friend away. Tears streamed down her face. She no longer knew what was going on. She didn't know what to do. She didn't know what to think or feel anymore. Her thoughts flooded her mind.

_If only I knew what my heart was telling me_

_Don't know what I'm feeling_

_Is this just a dream?_

_If only I could read the signs in front of me_

_I could find the wat to who I'm meant to be_

_If only_

* * *

Brelyn finally returned to the dorm in the middle of the night. Whatever she did, she could not fall asleep. She looked towards Elaina, who was completely passed out. She still felt really bad for what she had done to her. She decided it would be best to apologize in the morning.

Suddenly, the door opened. Brelyn tucked herself under her blanket, in fear intruders had entered her room. Even with the small number of foster homes she had stayed at, she knew that having uninvited guests in her room was never fun.

"I can't believe you convinced me into doing this," one voice said.

'We're not gonna get those gems from them any other way," the second voice said.

Just then, Elaina's bracelet began glowing. It was a sign that she was having another nightmare. "look," one of the figures said. Both began getting closer to Elaina's bed.

Afraid of what these unknown figures could do to Elaina, Brelyn reached for the lamp to turn it on, revealing Mal and Evie in the light. Both women made eye contact with her. Mal and Evie looked at each other, stunned, not knowing what to do. "I'm sorry to be blunt," Brelyn began, "but what are you doing in our room? Especially this late at night?"

"Um," Mal started, "we heard about you girls having nightmares, so we just decided to check on you girls."

"Yeah," Evie said, trying her best to play it cool.

"Do you do this to all the students?" 

"Sure, why not?" Mal replied, obviously trying to quickly end the conversation, so she and Evie would leave.

"Well, I'm fine. Elaina may be having a nightmare, but I think she'll be fine. If she wakes up, I'll be here to comfort her. That's how it was at the orphanage, and that's how it will be until the day we no longer live together, whenever that may be. However, I have a feeling we would still call each other."

"Good," Evie replied.

There was an awkward silence. Mal began, "Well, you have a good night."

"You too." Brelyn watched in pure confusion as Mal and Evie exited the room, leaving Brelyn and Elaina alone. _Scratch everything that happened today_ , she thought to herself. _That was probably the weirdest thing to happen all day_. Brelyn turned off the lamp and tried to fall asleep once again.


	17. Family Day Distaster

Family Day had finally arrived. Everyone at Auradon Prep was excited to see their families. The courtyard was decorated, and everyone wore their nicest outfits. Brelyn wore a purple, short-sleeve dress, Elaina wore a blue dress with red accents, Jacey wore a pink dress, with a blue vest, and Cayla wore a white dress with black polka dots. Each of the girls had their hair styled down and curled.

The four girls walked out to the balcony, looking over the garden where most of the celebrations were being held. They saw all their classmates as they reunited with their families. The girls could only imagine what it must feel like to reunite with loved ones.

They spotted Aria and Chad Jr. The darker-skinned woman they saw in Evie's office was with them along with a sturdy, blonde man who they assumed was Prince Chad Charming: their father.

Aiden had his family there too. While he and his family wore normal suits, his grandparents wore traditional Arabian attire. 

Mary was with her family as well. Her family wasn't hard to miss as pretty much everyone was a ginger.

All the families attending Family Day were happy. The girls only wished they could feel the same way and have a family to call their own. Luckily, they had each other.

"Come on, guys," Jacey said. "Let's go down and find something to do." The girls walked down to the garden. There was a beautiful lake with a gazebo in the center. Many families were there taking pictures. Aria spotted the girls and began waving to them.

"Hey," she called out. She motioned with hands for the four of them to come to her. Once they approached her, she brought them up to her parents. There also seemed to be two sets of older people with her family. "This is Brelyn, Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla," Aria introduced them. "They're the foster kids Ben invited to come attend school here."

'Well, it's nice to meet you all," Audrey replied. She sighed to herself. She was glad the girls and Aria were good friends now, but the girls should have been friends a long time ago. They were meant to grow up together, evil apparently never rests.

"Girls, this is my mom, Princess Audrey, my dad, Prince Chad, my grandmothers, Queen Aurora and Queen Cinderella, and my grandfathers, King Phillip and King Charming."

"Hello, your Majesties," the four girls replied with a nervous voice. They curtseyed, knowing formalities when meeting royals.

"No need to be afraid," Cinderella said with a soft tone. "And no need for the formalities. We all live together in Auradon under King Ben's rule."

"Yeah, and it's not like you came from the Isle of the Lost," Aurora added.

As if almost on cue, Mal approached them. "Ahem," she said, making per presence known and very obvious she heard the Isle comment.

"Oh, my apologies, Queen Mal," Aurora replied. Mal could see Audrey roll her eyes at her mother, and Mal chuckled. "Where's that handsome king of yours?" Aurora asked, trying to change the subject quickly.

"He's with his mom and dad, and I think after he is going to meet with Doug, Carlos, and Jay," Mal replied. "I was actually looking for Evie. Has anyone seen her around recently?"

"I actually saw her a little while ago," Audrey said. "Here, I can bring you to her." Audrey waved good-bye to er family before leading Mal to the last place she saw Evie. Audrey whispered to her, "You've got a really sweet daughter, there." Mal gave Audrey a soft smile before following her.

"Well," Brelyn started, "it was nice to meet you all."

"Same goes to you," Chad said, nodding.

The four girls began to walk away. Aria looked up to her father as if telepathically speaking to him. Chad nodded with a smile. Aria fast-walked her way to the girls and smiled when she joined them.

"Your family seems nice," Cayla said.

"Most of the time they are," Aria said. "My father's parents can be a little much sometimes, but for the most part, they're pretty chill. I know my mother's parents can be harsh sometimes. They're still a little wary about kids being brought over from the Isle. I mean, it's not the children's fault that they ended up on that island. They shouldn't be punished for something their parents or grandparents did a long time ago." the girls nodded in agreement.

"Hey," Mary said as she and Aiden joined up with them. "How's everyone doing?"

"We're fine," Aria replied.

"Yeah," Cayla added. "Everything's going good so far."

Mary then noticed that Elaina was shying behind the group a little. She looked a little somber and mostly focused on her hands as she looked down at them. "Are you okay, Elaina?"

Elaina snapped her head up. "Huh?" she said as she brought her mind back to reality. "Oh-um, yeah, I'm fine." Elaina tried to put on a happy smile.

"Are you sure?" asked Jacey. "Brelyn did apologize for making you cry the other day, right?"

"Hey," Brelyn said, slightly offended.

"Don't worry, she apologized," Elaina replied. Elaina was now aware of Brelyn's new magical development, but she had promised not to tell Jacey or Cayla until Brelyn knew exactly what was going on. She was very understanding.

Brelyn whispered into Aria's ear. "Elaina has always been a little on the downside when the subject of family comes up. I mean, she took being an orphan and not having a family pretty hard. She had been moved from group homes, foster homes, both potential forever homes and temporary foster homes, and the orphanage more than any other foster kid I knew. She was not wanted by many families, so these subjects are never easy for her." Aria nodded as she understood the situation.

"Oh no," Aiden said, looking behind the girls.

"Well, well, well," a voice said. "What do we have here?" The girls turned around to face the red-haired girl with the sea-green dress.

"What do you want Harmony?" Aria asked with an annoyed tone. After what Brelyn told her about Elaina, she wasn't going to let Harmony ruin the day for them.

"Nothing," Harmony replied. "I just wanna know why the orphans are here? I mean, they don't have any families. What's the point?"

"The point is that they have each other," Mary said. "Family doesn't always have to mean your blood family. Your best friends are as much as your family as they are. Which reminds me, I know your grandparents are here, but are your mom and dad actually here?"

"They're too busy with actual important things to do than to deal with such silly things," Harmony replied. "I just don't understand why three kids who were born into some of the greatest royal families in Auradon are wasting their time with these four freaks?"

Jacey didn't care if she was insulted, but she definitely cared when her three friends were being insulted. Jacey's bracelet began to glow a tiny bit as her eyes did as well. She was getting fired up.

"Jacey, don't," Cayla said, grabbing her arm. "She's not worth it."

Elaina started to become more on edge. She began to tear up a bit, not knowing how to control her emotions. She began blinking her eyes fast to prevent them from falling down her face.

"We like hanging out with them, unlike you," Aiden stated. "We don't care about where they came from or what their past was like. 

"Just look," Harmony began. "You've got the one has something going on but is obviously trying to hide it," she said, pointing at Brelyn. "You've got the one who will not just accept that girls in Auradon are just meant to be princesses," she said, motioning to Jacey. She motioned to Cayla, "You've got the one, um, I'm sorry, I have nothing for you. You're just boring." Cayla just rolled her eyes, not caring about anything Harmony was saying. "And you." Harmony moved to Elaina almost threateningly. "You're nothing but a little, lonely nerd who will never be good enough."

Brelyn began to notice that Elaina's bracelet began glowing red.

"You take that back, right now!" Jacey said, getting defensive.

"Why?" Harmony asked as she began to get in Elaina's face. Elaina almost froze, not knowing what to do as her emotions began to build up. "I bet that's why she never got adopted. Isn't that right?" Elaina's eyes began glowing red as well. Tears were now streaming down her face. "I bet that's why you were abandoned by your parents. I bet that's why nobody else wants to be your friend. You're just not good enough. You weren't good enough for your parents, and you will never be good enough."

Elaina couldn't take it anymore. She ran away, sobbing, as fast as she could with tears falling like a waterfall.

"Elaina, wait!" Brelyn called out as she ran after her. Jacey and Cayla followed.

"What was that about!?" Aria yelled at Harmony. "You have no idea what she or any of them have gone through. What makes you think you have the right to say that kind of thing to them?"

"Aria!" a voice called. It was Chad, and Chad Jr. followed closely behind. "Is there a problem"

"Yes, dad," Aria replied. "In fact, we do have a problem."

* * *

Mal, Evie, Audrey, Lonnie, and Jane were all in the bathroom. Despite all of them being grown, adult women, they sometimes felt like they were back in high school. They giggled at the conversation they were having. However, when the door opened, they all ran into the largest stall at the end. They didn't do anything wrong, but they just felt like they needed to hide. They all laughed quietly to each other before they noticed that the girl who entered was crying.

Evie was going to go comfort the girl but began to hide once more when she realized who it was. "It's Elaina," she whispered. The others all peeked out of the stall. Elaina stood at a sink, crying into her hands.

Suddenly, the other three girls came in. "Hey," Brelyn said. "Are you okay?"

"No," Elaina said. "I'm not okay."

"Just don't listen to anything Harmony says," Cayla said.

"How can I not when everything she's said about me is true?"

Jacey began, "Elaina, you can't really think anything she said is-"

"Of course it's true! Other kids at the orphanage have said it. Foster parents have said it. Even foster siblings have said it. Nobody wants me! My own parents didn't want me! They abandoned me because I wasn't good enough!"

Evie's heart dropped upon hearing that. She placed her hands over her mouth as she felt her own tears forming in her eyes.

"Elaina," Brelyn said. Her bracelet was still glowing, so she tried to calm her down. "You don't know that for sure."

"Well, it's obvious," she replied. "I can't even make any more friends outside of you guys or the other three. Other families didn't even want to adopt me! Why would my own parents want me?"

"Elaina-"

"No, no, I'm just gonna bo back to the dorm," she said. "I'll see you guys later." Elaina left the bathroom, leaving the girls alone. Or at least they thought they were alone.

"Arent you going to go after her?" asked Jacey.

"No," Brelyn replied. "Give her like an hour or two to cool down. I'll talk to her then."

The other two nodded in agreement. "That's interesting," Jacey continued. "At the orphanage, didn't we usually give you like an hour or two to cool down?"

"Oh haha, very funny," Brelyn replied sarcastically. The girls laughed as they exited the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" Jane asked Evie.

"I... I don't know," she replied. There was a slight quiver in her voice. "I can't believe she thinks Doug and I abandoned her. never wanted her to think that. That was the biggest thing I feared about all of this. She needs to know that Doug and I love her."

"Evie," Mal began. "There's no way you could've stopped her from thinking that. It's not your fault. Elaina doesn't know the truth, so we can't blame her for thinking that. This is obviously just years of not feeling accepted or wanted finally coming out. Everything will be fine, I promise."

"Thanks, M," Evie replied. The two hugged before the adults left the bathroom.


	18. Mind Control

Brelyn picked herself up out of bed. Morning had finally come. She stretched her arms as she turned her body so that her feet were touching the floor of the dorm room. She looked around the room. Something was off.

She looked to where Elaina was sleeping. That was it; Elaina was still cuddled up in her bed, possibly still asleep. Elaina usually woke up at the same time or a little before Brelyn, so it was unusual to find her still in bed when Brelyn woke up. Brelyn walked over to Elaina's bed just to make sure nothing was wrong.

"Elaina." Brelyn softly shook her friend from her sleep. "Are you alright?" Elaina groaned as she shifted her position. She was teary-eyed and red in the face. Brelyn placed the back of her hand against Elaina's forehead. "Oh my gosh, you're burning up. You're not going to school today."

Elaina coughed before she was able to speak. "M-My head hurts so much," Elaina finally answered with a raspy and tired voice.

"Go back to sleep and rest." Brelyn tucked the blanket around Elaina nicely. "I'll tell Evie that you won't be present today. I'll even go to your teachers and get your homework for you. I know how much you hate missing work."

After Elaina fell back asleep, Brelyn got ready for the school day. She left her dorm earlier than usual so she could inform the school Elaina would not be present.

* * *

She didn't even think when she approached Evie's office; she didn't even knock before entering. Things have just been more natural. When Brelyn entered, she saw Evie and Mal having a conversation. "Oh, I'm sorry," Brelyn said. "I should've knocked before coming in."

"You're good, Brelyn. No harm done," Evie replied. "What can I do for you?"

"I just came to inform you that Elaina will not be attending classes today."

A worried expression grew upon Evie's face. "Why? Is everything okay?"

"She woke up this morning and was completely burning. I'm almost positive she has a fever," Brelyn explained.

"Oh... well, thank you for letting me know."

Mal noticed the worried look upon her daughter's face. Fevers were common and easily treated, so she couldn't see why Brelyn seemed so on edge. "You look worried."

"Maybe just a little," she responded. "Elaina used to get sick a lot when we were little, and she got it bad. The orphanage thought it probably had something to do with her immune system probably not being super, fully developed when she was born or something, but she's pretty much grown from getting sick a lot. However, she still gets it pretty bad."

Mal and Evie shared worried looks. Mal could see Evie blaming herself for it, but Mal gave her a look that told her that it wasn't her fault. Evie shook the thought before speaking. "I can go check on her during the day if it'll make you feel better," Evie suggested. This suggestion was also to calm the nerves for herself as well.

Brelyn smiled. "I think I'd like that. I think Elaina would like it too."

* * *

The school day began just like every other day. Brelyn informed Jacey and Cayla of Elaina's condition; they too were very worried for her. Brelyn was still a little on edge about her newly developed powers. She either kept her hands in fists or held something to prevent any power surges. During one of her classes, she even felt a magic surge run through her. She took deep breathes and held her hands close to her chest.

Lunch came very quickly; Brelyn was very relieved about that. She walked over to their lunch table when she noticed someone missing. "Where's Cayla?"

"She has an extremely bad headache," Aria told her. "The biology teacher allowed her to go back to her dorm to rest."

"I hope she's okay," Mary added.

"Me too," Jacey said.

_Weird,_ Brelyn thought to herself as she remembered Elaina mentioning her head hurting. _First Elaina, now Cayla. Something is definitely going on here._

The group of friends continued to eat their lunch. Brelyn looked at Jacey; something was off. Jacey was red in the face and began sweating. Jacey kind of picked at her food instead of eating it. Brelyn could tell something was up given that she knew Jacey to usually have a big appetite. "Are you okay, Jacey?" she whispered.

"Yeah," Jacey nodded. "I'm fine. Just not that hungry"

Brelyn, being the mother of the group she is, placed the back of her hand over Jacey's forehead just as she did with Elaina earlier. "You seem to be getting a fever." Jacey's forehead wasn't as hot as Elaina's, but it was getting there. "Maybe you should head back to your dorm as well."

"I said I'm fine," Jacey snapped. "I have tourney practice after school anyway. I can't miss that."

Brelyn gave in. Jacey was known for being stubborn as well. She leaned over to Mary and Aiden. "Make sure she doesn't exert herself," she whispered to them. They both nodded in agreement.

* * *

After lunch, Brelyn headed to her next class. She was getting very worried about her friends. She prayed that nothing wrong would happen to her as well. She already had her magic to deal with; she didn't want to deal with not feeling well on top of it.

Brelyn sat in her seventh period: Safety Rules for the Internet. She couldn't really pay attention because there were so many different things she was worried about.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Brelyn's head. She shut her eyes tightly and clutched her head with her hands. _You've got to be kidding me._ When she opened her eyes, she noticed her bracelet was glowing. She began to see a green glare; this was a sign that her eyes were glowing as well. She tried to regulate her breathing, but she failed to do so.

"Brelyn, are you okay?" the teacher asked worriedly. That was the last thing she heard before everything went black...

* * *

Evie walked through the girls' dormitory. She greeted each girl she saw through the halls as classes had just finished, and all the students were migrating over to their rooms. She remembered walking down the hall with Mal when they were in high school. She remembered the feeling of excitement she had when she first came to Auradon despite Mal's disgust for it all. She reached Brelyn and Elaina's room. She smiled as she remembered living in that very room. It only felt right that their daughters lived in this room as well.

She turned the doorknob and opened the door slowly in case Elaina was sleeping. It was a little dark in the room as the curtains were closed. Brelyn must have closed them to give Elaina an easier time sleeping. "Elaina?" she whispered, but she got no response in return. She walked over to the bed on the left. She assumed it was Elaina's as there was a stack of textbooks and a glasses case on the nightstand. It was interesting that Elaina slept on the same side Evie did.

Evie leaned over the bed; she was shocked by what she saw. The thing was, she didn't see anything. Elaina was not in her bed. Evie was very confused. _Maybe she's in the bathroom?_ She walked to the bathroom, but Elaina wasn't there either. Evie tried to think of all the places where a very sick teenage girl would be other than in bed. She then remembered that Cayla and Jacey's room was straight across. She walked out to the hall and into the girls' room. She knew that Cayla had gone back during the day. She was shocked to see that nobody was in the room, including Cayla. _This is really weird._

Evie walked out into the hall. She was very confused and didn't know what to do. Suddenly, she spotted Brelyn walking down the hall. "Hey!" she called out. "I don't mean to alarm you, but Elaina and Cayla are nowhere to be found. Do you have any clue where they could be?" Brelyn did not respond. Evie became very concerned. "Brelyn-" Evie noticed the green glow that came from Brelyn's eyes. The gem on the bracelet was glowing as well. She completely walked past Evie with a dead stare. _Oh no._

* * *

A meeting was called in Fairy Godmother's office. Something was going on with the girls, and they were determined to get to the bottom of things. Evie explained how both Elaina and Cayla were missing and her encounter with Brelyn. Jay then added that Jacey never showed up to tourney practice. Aiden and Mary had informed him that she didn't seem t be feeling too good, but she hadn't been seen since lunch.

"It has to be those gems," Lonnie said. "What other explanation is there?"

"Those gems have the power to take over the mind, yes," Mal explained, "but they don't have the power to take over the entire body unless there is something or someone else behind it."

"Are you saying the girls' are being mind-controlled?" asked Jane.

"I mean," Mal began, "it's a possibility."

"With my extensive knowledge of magic," Fairy Godmother began, "I can easily say that mind control is a very high possibility."

"But who could be behind it?" asked Carlos. "Wr obviously know that the gems are from the Isle of the lost, but there's next to no magic there."

"You know," Jay started, "other than the hole in the barrier you created years ago."

Mal gasped as she came to a realization. "You don't think it's our parents, do you?"

Everybody looked at Mal in shock. "Mal," Evie began, "what makes you think our parents are behind it."

"Well, not necessarily all of our parents. I'm thinking more of my mother."

"Maleficent?" Doug asked. "But she became a lizard at Ben's coronation. How would she be able to use magic on the Isle? Isn't she like in a tank in your room or something?"

"Now that I think of it," Ben finally said. "I don't think I've ever seen your lizard mother since we were in high school."

"Yeah, about that," Mal sighed. "When I ran back to the Isle before Cotillion, I took my mother with me. I'm pretty sure I never took her back."

"You're pretty sure or you know for a fact that you left her there?" Lonnie questioned.

"No, you're right. I completely left her there."

The group groaned. "Seriously?" Carlos said with a deadpan expression. "So what you're saying is that you left your mother on the Isle, and she possibly was able to regain her normal physical appearance because of the magic seeping through the hole in the barrier."

Mal nodded slowly, not wanting to believe it, but there was no other explanation.

Suddenly, Carlos received a call. He looked at everybody in shock after he heard the other end of the call. "There's been a security breach in the museum." Everybody looked at each other, expecting the worst to happen.


	19. Evil Destruction

The eight adults sprinted towards the museum. It wasn't that hard to guess what was going on. They knew exactly who had breached security, and they knew exactly what they were after.

How could they have let this happen? They were supposed to be protecting their daughters and now they were under some mind control spell.

"What part of the museum is Fairy Godmother's wand even placed?" Lonnie asked.

"This way!" Evie replied, guiding the group as she remembered when she and the other VKs tried to steal the wand all those years ago.

The group ran up the stairs frantically, hoping to reach their little girls in time. Deep down, they all knew they were too late, but they had to do what they could to protect Auradon and their daughters from harm. They passed the Hall of Villains, in which Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay stopped for a moment.

It had been years, and those statues of their parents still sent shivers down their spines.

"We don't really have time to be thinking about our pasts right now," Jane said, snapping the four out of their trance.

"S-sorry."

"Almost there," Evie said as they all continued to climb the steps.

They approached the room where Fairy Godmother's wand was being held. They were right; they were too late. Brelyn had the wand in her hand. The four girls turned around to face the adults.

"Brelyn." Mal looked at her daughter desperately. "Don't do this."

Brelyn didn't answer. She was stuck in a trance. Her eyes glowed green just as the gem glowed. The same went for the other three. "I must follow Master Maleficent, the Mistress of Evil." Brelyn's voice was very monotone, showing that she had no control over her actions.

Mal had tried to lunge at Brelyn for the wand, but Elaina, Jacey, and Cayla blocked her.

"Elaina, please!" Evie begged.

Elaina, like Brelyn, did not respond at first. She had no control over her mind. Evie prayed that, deep down, Elaina was still in there in that large brain of hers, trying to fight her way out. She just had to. Evie couldn't lose her baby girl again.

Brelyn raised the wand to the air. The eight of them backed up in fear of what she was going to do.

"By the power vested in me," Brelyn said as she began to recite a spell, "set Maleficent free."

A lightning bolt shot through the air. The eight adults ducked for cover. Luckily, nobody was hurt. Suddenly, a puff of green smoke came flying in. It landed on the ground to reveal Maleficent. "I'm back!"

"What do you want, mother?" Mal was angry, not just at her mom, but at herself for so stupidly leaving her on the Isle.

"Just to use your daughters for my own personal benefit. I mean, this was the plan all along."

Mal's eyes grew wide. Her tone of voice grew softer. "You... You know they're our daughters?" Mal was in shock. "But how?"

Maleficent cackled. "You sweetheart, are you really that gullible? I've been tracking you ever since you left me on the Isle all those years ago," Maleficent explained. "You thought those threats were made against you four? Oh, that's funny." She continued to laugh as the adults looked at each other in confusion. "I heard the news when Brelyn was born. The same goes for Jacey. You four may have failed me, but I was determined to get my hands on your little kiddies. Then I hear you give your children up for adoption. You say it's for protection, but it actually made everything so much easier for me. Soon, they will be mine in my evil plan to finally take over Auradon and become Mistress of the Universe."

"You will be doing nothing of the sort!" Ben yelled.

"Of course," Maleficent began, "your girls did inherit your 'goodness' features. They're kind and loving to one another and others. That's just plain gross. I mean, Elaina used to watch over this group of six and seven-year-olds. Who does that?"

At this point, the adults were getting annoyed and didn't want to hear much more of it. Jay went straight for Maleficent's scepter just as he did when she attacked Ben's coronation.

"Jay!" Lonnie yelled as she worried for her husband.

Maleficent's eyes turned green and magically pushed Jay back. He fell back to the ground, and Lonnie rushed to his side.

"There's something I can teach them that you four never understood," Maleficent added. "i will teach them just how weak and ridiculous love is. For thirteen to fourteen years, these girls never felt the love of a mother or father. Did you really think that wouldn't have any lasting effects on them as they grew older?"

Evie remembered the other day when Elaina stormed into the bathroom because she felt like she and Doug had abandoned her along with every foster home she ever had. Did Elaina believe love was weak and ridiculous? She couldn't believe that. It was obvious she loved Brelyn, Cayla, and Jacey.

Maleficent kept on explaining herself. "Thanks to these gems, I was able to control their minds. If you read up on the gems I used to control them, then you know that they feed off of hurt and pain, and, boy, are your girls full of it. I mean, all those foster homes that didn't want to take them in or sent them back to the orphanage because they weren't a 'good fit'. Who knows the extent of damage they have? I now have complete control over their feelings and actions." Maleficent turned to the four girls. "Girls, take them away and bring me every magical item within this museum."

The four girls nodded and began walking towards the adults. Their walks were slow, which gave Mal time to think.

"Girls, stop!" she shouted. "I know you guys are in there deep down, trying to fight this." The four girls stopped. "I know you don't want to do this. You girls are so much more than just some foster kids. Don't listen to anything the people at foster homes or the mean kids at the orphanage have told you. You are wanted. You girls are smart, loving, and passionate. We couldn't ask for anything more from anybody attending Auradon Prep. You girls are so much more than you think you are. So please, find that within yourselves." The girls just gave a blank stare with their eyes continuing to glow. "Please," Mal whispered. "Please, Brelyn, I know you're in there."

Suddenly, the glow flickered in Brelyn's eyes. The adults backed up, startled. Brelyn clutched her head and screamed from excruciating pain. She collapsed onto the floor as tears streamed down her face. She fell to the ground just as the gemstone began to crack. The gem eventually broke, and Brelyn passed out.

"No!" Maleficent exclaimed. "Girls! Get them!"

"Come on, Elaina!" Evie yelled. "I know you're in there too!"

"You got this, Jacey!" Jay shouted.

"I know you can do it, Cayla!" Carlos added.

Though the girls still had blank stared, there was something about them that they could tell the girls were in there, fighting. Suddenly, the three girls did just what Brelyn did. Once they collapsed on the ground, their gems shattered. The adults looked at each other with large smiles. Did they really just get their daughters out of their trance?

"You all will regret this!" Green clouds began to surround Maleficent as she turned into a mighty dragon.

"Mal," Ben said, getting her attention. Mal knew exactly what she needed to do and nodded. Purple clouds surrounded her as she turned into a dragon as well.

The battled between Maleficent and Mal was intense. They blew fire at each other and loud roars filled the building. Mal did whatever she could to avoid anybody in the room from getting hurt. The other VKs went down and grabbed the girls.

Suddenly, one of Mal's and Maleficent's infamous staring contests broke out. Both of them concentrated on each other with green glowing eyes.

"Come on, Mal," Evie whispered. "I know you can do it."

Suddenly, Maleficent shrunk down into the tiny lizard that Mal saw her last as. Mal flew down to the ground and transformed into her normal self. She looked back at the other. "I think she's down for, at least for now."

"You got that right," a voice called from behind. It was Fairy Godmother joined by King Beast and Queen Belle.

"Mom? Dad?" Ben asked as he cradled Brelyn in his arms. "What are you doing here?"

"Godmother called us to inform us of what was going on," Beast explained. "But it seems like you all got it under control."

"And Mal," Fairy Godmother started, "I think it's best that we take Maleficent into our own hands. We promise we'll take good care of her."

Mal nodded. "I really do think that would be best." Fairy Godmother smiled as she would have gotten a different response from Mal if she was still in high school.

Belle walked over to Ben. She wanted to get a better look at Brelyn. She looked in awe at her granddaughter. "Still as beautiful as the day she was born." 

Ben looked down at his unconscious daughter in his arms. He couldn't help but smile as he remembered holding her as a baby for the first time. 

"Come on," Belle said. "Let's bring these girls back home. They're not going anywhere."

Everyone smiled at each other. Each father carried their little girl in their arms as they walked back. The mothers couldn't help but smile at the sight of their husbands' smiles as they cradled their children. It melted their hearts.

As they walked back, Brelyn began to wake up. "What happened?" Her voice was groggy as she was still kind of out of it.

"Don't worry," Ben replied.

"Everything's going to be fine," Mal added.


	20. They Have to Know

The four girls looked at the eight adults in confusion. None of them really knew what happened or why it happened. The adults tried their best to explain what happened, but that just made the girls even more confused than before. They sat within the castle as they recovered from being mind-controlled.

Brelyn asked the first question. "But why did this all happen?"

"Why did Maleficent want us?" Elaina added. "How would we be the most important part of her evil plan? We're just random kids."

The adults looked at each other. "Um, give us a moment," Mal said as they all exited the room, leaving the girls by themselves with their confusion.

"What are we going to do?" asked Evie. "They're so confused and have no idea what was going on let alone why. What are we gonna tell them?"

Ben and Mal looked at each other and nodded. "We were actually thinking," Ben started, "Maybe it's time that we tell the girls... you know."

The other six parents' eyes widened. _Was this really happening?_ "You mean, tell them that we're they're parents?" Jane asked in disbelief. Ben nodded.

Lonnie asked the next question. "How can we know for sure that they'll be safe?"

"They'll be fine," Fairy Godmother added. "It's obvious Maleficent was the one behind the threats made all those years ago. Now that she's dealt with, I think it's safe to say that the girls will be safe knowing who their parents are." Belle and Beast nodded in agreement.

"They have to know," Belle explained. "It wouldn't be fair to them not knowing anything after everything that has happened? Also given how they grew up, this is probably their light at the end of the tunnel."

"So, how are we going to do this?" asked Jay.

The group huddled up, trying to figure out ways to break it to the girl. Would they tell them separately or together? Would they be upset? After a couple of minutes, they finally had what they wanted to do.

Belle walked into the room the girls were in. "Girls," she called to them. They all turned around to face her. All four looked to the former queen in admiration. Little did they know that they were a lot closer to her than they thought. "There's something important we need to discuss. Why don't you come on out with me."

The girls looked at each other before getting up to walk out the door. Once they were out of the door, they were faced with eight people who would soon change their lives forever. They were silent, which kind of scared the girls.

"Jacey," Jay began. "Why don't you come with Lonnie and me."

Jacey looked at the girls in confusion before going with Jay and Lonnie. They entered another room.

Cayla and Elaina were asked to do the same with Jane and Carlos and Evie and Doud respectively.

Brelyn was left alone as she faced Ben and Mal. They looked at each other before taking a deep breath. "Come on, Brelyn. Mal and I want to take you somewhere." Brelyn followed, not knowing what was going on, but she hoped for the best.


	21. Jacey's Discovery

Jacey sat facing Jay and Lonnie. All three of them were silent. Jacey wiggled her thumbs together in her lap as she sat there nervously. What were the two of them going to tell her? And why was it just her alone? Jay seemed to be unable to look Jacey in the eye.

Lonnie looked at her husband. "Do you want to say something, or do you want me to start?"

Jay shrugged. "You can start, I guess. I'm blank right now."

Lonnie took a deep breath before starting. The entire conversation would affect her very own life as well as Jay's and Jacey's. "So Jacey," she started. "Tell us about yourself."

"You're starting there?" Jay questioned.

"I honestly don't know where to start with this. I don't think any of us know how to start. I mean, it's been fourteen years. What am I supposed to say?" Lonnie whispered.

"Well," Jacey responded. "I'm a foster kid, but I'm pretty sure you already knew that. "I'm fourteen. I was given up for adoption when I was a newborn. I've grown up in the orphanage as well as several different foster homes. I've made some friends at schools and at the orphanage and I've had a few nice foster siblings I guess, but Brelyn, Elaina, and Cayla are the only true friends I've ever had."

There was an awkward silence. Jay and Lonnie didn't really know where they were going with this. Jacey could really feel the tension in the room as she breathed heavily and slowly. Jacey noticed Lonnie's eyes begin to tear up. 

Jay decided it was time for him to speak up. "Anything else you could tell us?" he said, putting his arm around Lonnie for comfort.

Jacey thought about it for a second. "I'm not like most girls here at Auradon, and I don't mean that in a quirky way." Both Jay and Lonnie seemed to be intrigued by the comment. "I'm not the pretty pink stereotype a lot of girls say I need to be. I've even heard that this part of me was actually a turn off for a few foster homes." She began to tear up herself. "I... I enjoy playing sports. I'm a sword fighter. Tourney is so much fun for me."

By now, Jacey was full-blown crying. Crying wasn't something she was known for, but all the baggage from her life as a foster kid began to make its way to the surface. "I like jumping across things. I enjoy running around. I don't enjoy being a 'perfect princess' or whatever the Auradon Prep standard is. I enjoy being different," Jacey cried. "I'm sorry." She wiped the tears from her eyes.

"No, sweetie, you're fine," Lonnie assured her with tears in her own eyes.

"I just never understood why I'm so different. I know Elaina, Cayla and Brelyn are different in their own ways too, but I just feel so different, and maybe that's why it was hard for me to get adopted. I just feel like if I knew where I came from I would know why. I need to know this part of my life that has been missing, y'know?"

"Yeah," Jay responded. "We know. "I can tell you this..."

Both Lonnie and Jacey looked at him.

"You sure?" Lonnie whsipered.

Jay nodded. Jacey was now crying and confused. "Jacey," Jay started. "I think we'll be able to fill that missing piece in your life."

"How would you be able to do that? You don't even know me."

"We know you more than you think," Lonnie replied.

"How could you possibly-"

"When you were born, you weighed six pounds and nine ounces, and you were seventeen inches long."

Jacey's eyes widened. The orphanage had known her birthday because that was provided when she was dropped off, but she never knew her birth weight or length. "I don't understand," she started. "How would you know that? How do you know who I am? I'm just some generic foster kid that was left at a local orphanage fourteen years ago."

"That's because we're the ones that left you at that orphanage," Lonnie said.

Jacey thought she felt her soul leave her body. "What?"

"Jacey," Jay began. "We are... Lonnie and me.. We're... We're your parents."

Both Jay and Lonnie were looking into the crying teenager's eyes. The young girl had both confusion and sadness in her eyes. She didn't know how to respond to the information that was thrown at her seconds ago; especially information that basically just changed her life.

"Now, I know you must be mad," Lonnie started. Jacey remained silent. She couldn't respond. "Jacey? Jacey, please say something."

"I... I'm sorry. I'm just... in shock. How do I know for sure you guys are my mom and dad?"

"Maybe this will do?" Jay pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Jacey.

Jacey looked down at the paper that was being given to her. Suddenly, everything in the world started to make sense. "Is this my birth certificate?" A smile started to appear on her tearful face. her name was printed in large letters along with her birthdate. "This is my birth certificate!" Jay and Lonnie were right. Their names were right there under mother and father. "My middle name is Lynn?" Lonnie nodded. "I never knew that. I like it."

"Yeah," Lonnie said silently. "The three weeks we had you with us were the best three weeks of our lives. That night we had to give you up was the worst day of our lives. We never wanted to give you up. I hope you know that."

"It was for your protection," Jay explained. "We thought a threat was made against Mal, Evie, Carlos, and me. We had to get you four away from us before we put your lives in danger."

Lonnie spoke. "You probably hate us for it but-" 

She was cut off by Jacey, who ran up to her. She was hugging her. Lonnie was being hugged by her daughter that she hasn't seen in fourteen years. She was in shock. She didn't know how to respond. She then began to embrace Jacey in her arms. Both she and Jacey were crying tears of joy in each other's arms.

Jay then joined the hug, embracing both his wife and daughter. "Jacey," he began. "You are not that different from your mother and me. Your personality matches up perfectly with your mom."

Jacey looked up to her mother, who was still crying. Jacey couldn't help but smile at her. That missing piece from her life had finally been filled. She was still in shock. Jacey didn't know how to respond except smile. She giggled, which made Lonnie and Jay laugh as well. "I never thought this day would ever happen in a million years."

"Neither did we," Jay replied.

"I'm just glad I finally got to meet you guys. You guys are even better than I could imagine."

"I'm just surprised you were never adopted. You are such an amazing kid," Lonnie said.

"I've had fifty foster homes reject me throughout my life," Jacey said.

"Fifty!?" Both Jay and Lonie were surprised to hear that.

"Well, I mean, most of them were temporary foster homes that I only stayed in for, like, a night between switching long-term homes, but that doesn't bother me anymore. I have you guys now."

Jay laughed. "And you'll have us forever. We're glad to have you back."

"Wait!" Jacey said, realizing something and putting pieces together. "Does... Does that mean that Elaina is Evie and Doug's daughter?"

"Yep."

"And Cayla is Carlos and Jane's?"

"You got that right."

"And Brelyn is Mal and Ben's of course. I should've known with the purple hair. I guess I should've known with Elaina too. I mean the blue hair and glasses are dead giveaways.

Lonnie nodded. "Yeah, we're shocked the four of you didn't pick up on that and become suspicious..."

"WAIT!?" Jacey exclaimed louder than before.

"What? What's wrong?" Fourteen years since she last held her baby girl and Lonnie's motherly instincts still kicked in full gear.

"So that means that Mulan, the Mulan, you know, who saved all of China, is my GRANDMOTHER!?"

Lonnie let out a laugh and nodded. "Yeah. I can assure you that she and your grandfather would love to meet you soon."

"Oh my god," Jacey said. "Li Shang is my grandfather."

"You also have an uncle and three cousins," Jay added.

Jacey looked to her mother in shock. She went from having no family, except for her three best friends, to having a mom, dad, grandmother, grandfather, uncle, and cousins. It was then that Jacey could feel herself getting a little overwhelmed.

"Hey, don't worry," Lonnie calmed her. "They'll be time for family reunions later. Let just focus on us for right now. Okay?"

"Okay."

The family got up and headed for the door. Jacey walked in the middle of her long lost parents and held both of their hands on their way out. Jacey didn't think she could be anymore happier than she was in that moment.


	22. Cayla's Discovery

Cayla stood in the room with Carlos and Jane. None of them really knew what to say. Jane and Carlos were whispering to each other, but Cayla could not make out anything they were saying. She looked around the room as she didn't want to make it seem like she was staring at them.

"So Cayla," Carlos began. "Why don't you tell us about yourself. We would really like to get to know you better."

"Well," Cayla started. "I'm thirteen. I've been a foster kid for basically my entire life. I guess I'm smart. I mean, I'm nowhere as smart as Elaina, but I think I'm pretty smart for my age."

Carlos nodded with a smile. He remembered being one of the younger ones in his class as he was quite smarter than the other kids.

Jane couldn't wait any longer. She wanted to get this done like ripping off a bandage. "We have a surprise for you."

"A surprise?"

"I thought we were going to get to know her a little bit more first," Carlos whispered.

"I can't wait. It's too much tension."

"Okay," Carlos said, walking over to the door. When he opened it, there was the sound of barking. Three dogs walked into the room with a lot of energy. Cayla covered her mouth in shock. She was really face to face with dogs. One was dressed like Carlos and another was dressed like Jane. "These are our dogs," Carlos said. "The boy is named Dude and the girl is named Lily."

Cayla bent down to the dogs' level. They surrounded her as they jumped up to her knees excitedly. She was a little hesitant to pet them, but once she did, she fell in love. Tears were forming in her eyes because of how cute they were and how happy she was. "They're so cute," she said. Jane and Carlos's hearts melted as they watched Cayla's happiness.

The third dog began barking. It was smaller than the other two as it was just a puppy. Oddly enough, that dog was dressed like Cayla. Cayla picked up the tiny dog as she stood up. "And who's this cutie?"

"That's Daisy," Jane explained. "She's Dude and Lily's pup."

Cayla held Daisy in her hands happily. Carlos and Jane looked at each other and nodded. "You can have her," Carlos said.

"What?" Cayla asked. "But... But she's your dog, and I wouldn't want to split up a family," she said, motioning to the dogs at her feet.

"But you wouldn't be splitting up a family," Carlos said. Cayla was now confused. Carlos and Jane looked at each other before getting closer to Cayla. "Just as we said, Daisy is Dude and Lily's daughter. Just as you are our daughter."

Cayla looked up at Carlos and Jane as her smile dissipated. She gently put Daisy on the ground as she tried to process what has just been said. "Excuse me, but did you just say that I'm... your daughter?" Carlos and Jane nodded. Cayla could feel the world crashing down on her, but she was more confused than anything. "But... how?"

"Maybe this will help." Jane pulled a piece of paper out from her purse.

Cayla grabbed it in confusion. Once she read it, everything began to fall into place. Her name was Cayla Jennifer De Vil, she was born at 6:27 am, she weighed seven pounds and three ounces, and she was nineteen inches long. Most importantly, she was the daughter of Carlos and Jane. Tears began flowing out of her eyes as she covered her mouth in shock. She didn't know how to react. She was sad and happy all at the same time.

"We just want you to know," Jane began, "that giving you up was the hardest thing we've ever had to do. We never wanted to do it, but we had to in order to keep you protected. We didn't want something against us to bring danger to your life. We know you may be mad, and you have every right to be, but we just want you to know that we've always loved you."

To their surprise, Cayla smiled. her teary-eyes smile made them smile as well. They couldn't help it as tears began falling down their faces. "Thank you," Cayla said. She ran up to the two to hug them.

Carlos and Jane were a little surprised by Cayla's action, but they soon embraced her as everything was processed. Their baby girl was now home, and they didn't have to worry about her leaving ever again.

"I'm just surprised you were never adopted."

"I don't even care that I was moved between foster homes, group homes, and the orphanage, like, thirty different times. I have you guys, and that's all that matters now." Carlos and Jane laughed. This made Cayla giggle. She was happy. She felt home. She left loved. "Just one thing. Well, maybe a couple of things."

"What is it?" Jane asked.

"So Brelyn is Mal and Ben's daughter, Elaina is Evie and Doug's daughter, and Jacey is Jay and Lonnie's daughter, right?"

Carlos chuckled. "You have this all figured out, don't you?"

Cayla felt happiness as she was glad her friends were able to find their missing pieces. The things in her life were starting to fall into place, and she couldn't have asked for anything more.


	23. Elaina's Discovery

Elaina sat across from Evie and Doug. She breathed slowly and nervously. She wasn't sure what was about to happen or what she was going to be told. She adjusted her blue hair so that it was positioned behind her ear. Elaina also readjusted her glasses so they wouldn't fall down her nose. "So um," Elaina said, breaking the awkward silence, "why exactly are we here alone?"

"What was life like for you at the orphanage and your foster homes?" Evie asked. Doug looked at her in confusion. She shrugged her shoulders in response.

"Well," Elaina began. Evie and Doug seemed to pay close attention when she spoke. "I've been a foster kid for all thirteen years of my life. The head of the orphanage, Ms. Jones, told me that I was dropped off by my caseworker, Corrie Harrison, the day after I was born. Brelyn and Jacey were already there, given that they're about a year older than me. Cayla arrived about two or three months after I did. We've just been best friends since forever. They were the closest thing I had to an actual family."

"Have you ever wondered about your biological family?" Doug asked.

"I have," Elaina said, looking down at her hands. "More often than not I guess. Of the four of us, I was probably the one who thought about my parents the most. I sometimes would wonder what it would've been like if they hadn't given me up. Maybe I wouldn't have gone through everything I have in my foster homes."

The last sentence is what threw Evie and Doug off guard. "Did it ever bother you."

Elaina was silent for a little bit. Evie and Doug really didn't know how to respond to the silence. "I'd be lying if I said that it didn't bother me," she finally said. "It actually bothered me quite a lot. I guess that's kind of why I'm so much smarter than kids my age."

"How does your intelligence tie into your parents?" asked Evie.

"Whenever I was upset, Mrs. Anderson, the tutor in the orphanage, would give me some extra math problems or reading assignments to get my mind off of it. She would always tell me not to stop until I felt a little better. Probably not the best coping mechanism for a little kid, but it did help me feel better, I will admit. At first, I hated it, but now, I actually quite enjoyed it. I guess my love for writing also spawned from this too. Once she ran out of extra assignments for me, she would just tell me to write. Writing has given me so much happiness. It took away any negative feelings I had."

"You're such a smart kid," Doug added. "I can tell just from your chemistry scores. I'm just surprised none of your foster families ever adopted you." Elaina's smile quickly transformed into a frown. Her eyes went to the floor once more. Evie hit Doug lightly as what he caused. "Elaina, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have-"

"N-No, you're fine. Foster homes have just never been my thing." Both Evie and Doug tilted their heads. Elaina took a breath before continuing. "During my time in the foster system, I've been through... so many foster homes. Way more than any kid should have. Some of them were nice, but most were... not so nice. No matter what, I was always sent back to the orphanage, and, most of the time, I never understood why. It's because of these foster homes that I have the mindset I have about other people."

"And what's your mindset?"

"That I'm unwanted. I'm not needed. No one wants me." Elaina began to tear up a bit.

"How in the world did you even get that mindset?" Evie asked.

"t always hurt whenever I was back at the orphanage from a foster home that didn't want me," Elaina said as her voice cracked as she began to cry. "The older kids used to, and pretty much still did until I left to come here, would tease me whenever I returned. They used to say that there was something wrong with me. One foster family returned me the next day after I accidentally dropped a plate and it shattered. Everyone told me that I wasn't good enough. That I wasn't good enough for my parents." Evie and Doug were shocked at the last sentence. They didn't know what to make of it. "I started to believe them." Evie and Doug were now heart-broken. "I believed them when they said that my parents abandoned me because I wasn't good enough to ever get adopted." Elaina was now full-blown crying.

"E-Elaina," Evie said trying to fight back her own tears. "How... How many foster homes have you gone through?"

Elaina shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not entirely sure since it's a large number, but I do know I've switched between foster homes, the orphanage, temporary foster homes, and group homes at least about a hundred times."

"A hundred?" Doug asked. "You is that even possible?"

"When you're an unwanted kid like me, they just keep moving you. Plus, temporary foster homes were just short-term placements. I never stayed at one for more than a week before they transferred me to another long-term foster home, a group home, or back to the orphanage."

"You mean to tell me you've probably been through about a hundred different living situations with who knows how many people, and not a single one wanted to adopt you?"

Elaina shook her head. "I've overheard some of the reasons why some didn't want to adopt me. I was too pretty. I wasn't pretty enough. I was way too smart for them. I looked weird with my blue hair. I was clumsy. I was shy and didn't talk much. I used to believe that those people just had way too high expectations from a kid, but after foster home and after foster home, I started to think. Was it me? Do people really not want me for who I am? Did my parents really not want me because I wasn't good enough?"

"Elaina," Evie started. "You are good enough. I promise you that."

"How do you know I'm good enough?" Elaina cried. "Nobody wanted me. I can barely even make friends outside of the ones I already have here at Auradon! Who would even want me?"

"Well, we'd want you," Doug said.

"What?" Elaina asked. "I can't understand why you would want me."

"How long have you had that necklace?" Evie asked, now changing the subject.

"Oh, this?" Elaina said, twirling her necklace in her fingers. "I've had it all my life. It was one of the things that gave me hope when I was rejected. It means the world to me. It's almost like it fills the hole that has been missing from my life. I just wish I knew who had the other half."

Evie then suddenly began digging through her purse. She pulled out a necklace. It was the same necklace that adorned Elaina's neck; half a red apple. "I have one just like it. Except it seems to be the other half of yours. Like yours, mine means the world to me."

"But it's not like it's significant to one. No offense. I'm sure it's very special to you, but to me, that just another half of the same type of necklace."

"True," Evie started, knowing where Elaina was coming from. "but when put together with its respective other half, it glows, and it only glows when paired with the other necklace it came with."

Elaina was now intrigued. She got closer to Evie to put their necklaces together. It was a perfect fit. Something then happened that shocked Elaina; it glowed. Elaina looked up at Evie in shock. "H-How? How do you have the other half of my necklace?"

Evie then handed Elaina a little mirror. "Look at me, look at Doug, then look at yourself. You're smart. I'm sure you can figure it out."

Elaina was very confused as to what was going on at that moment. She kept looking back ad forth; at Evie, at Doug, then at her reflection. When she finally put the pieces together, it hit her like a brick wall. Her blue hair. Her dark brown eyes. Her glasses. "Are you telling me,... you... you guys are my... parents?"

Doug and Evie looked at each other before nodding. There was silence. No one really knew what to say. Doug and Evie were afraid that Elaina would be mad. "Before you say anything else," Evie started. "I just want you to know that we never wanted to hurt you. The whole reason we had to give you up was for your protection. We didn't want a threat against me to put you in danger. If I could go back in time and change things, I would. I would do it in a heartbeat."

"We understand that you might be mad," Doug added. "You have every right to be mad."

"I just have one question," Elaina responded. Evie and Doug were listening intently. "Do you guys love me?"

Evie and Doug looked at each other once more. "Elaina, of course, we love you," Evie replied. "We've loved you since the day we found out I was pregnant with you, and we never stopped loving you even after you were given up. We may have been apart for thirteen years, but our love for you is still there. I promise you that we still love you."

To Evie and Doug's surprise, a smile had run across Elaina's teary-eyes face. Before they had time to react, she ran and hugged them. Both of them were in shock but returned the hug after processing what just happened. All three of them were now shedding tears. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this," Elaina whispered.

Evie giggled. "We feel the same way." Elaina's head rested on Evie's shoulder, and Doug had his arms wrapped around both of them. For the first time in forever, Evie finally felt the joy she had when she held her baby girl in her arms for the first time.

Suddenly, Elaina's grin changed back to a frown. "I feel terrible for thinking you guys abandoned me. I'm... I'm sorry."

Evie shifted her position so she was looking at Elaina directly in the eye. She cupped her daughter's face in her hands. "Elaina, that wasn't your fault. There was no way you could have known what was really going on. No one could blame you for something you didn't know."

Elaina giggled. "For the first time in a long time, I actually feel really dumb about something."

"And what is that?" Doug asked.

"How did I not realize I was your guys' daughter? I mean, I have your blue hair and brown eyes, and I have your bad vision."

Evie then took Elaina's glasses off her face and put them on her own. Se quickly moved them away from her eyes as she took a peek through them. "Wow, you really do have your father's eyesight."

Elaina laughed once more. For once in her life, she felt complete.

Doug then motioned to the girls that they should get going. The three of them exited the room hand-in-hand. They met with Jacey, Jay, Lonnie, Cayla, Carlos, and Jane; Jacey was holding hands with Jay and Lonnie, and Cayla was holding hands with Carlos and Jane. Everybody's faces were filled with smiles and tears. It had been a very emotional day for all of them. Everybody started laughing. They soon came into a giant group hug.

"Wait a minute," Elaina said, remembering something. "Where's Brelyn, Mal, and Ben? I think by now we all know she's their daughter."

"Ben and Mal wanted to take Brelyn someplace special for them to tell her. Brelyn is a princess after all," Carlos said.

It wasn't long before they were hugging again. 

They were finally a family.


	24. Brelyn's Discovery

Ben and Mal had decided to take Brelyn somewhere. All three were surprisingly able to fit onto Ben's scooter. Ben was the one driving. Brelyn held onto his waist tightly, as she was hanging on to her to make sure she was secure.

Brelyn wasn't sure where they were taking her, but for whatever reason, it seemed familiar. She looked at the green scenery of the forest. She had never seen anything so beautiful like that. The orphanage she grew up in was part of a suburban area and none of her few foster homes she lived at had scenery like this. Brelyn has always been interested in the beauty that is nature.

The scooter came to stop, and Ben began taking off his helmet. "We're almost here," he said. "It's just a small hike into the woods." Brelyn nodded in response as she took off her helmet. Mal grabbed her hand as she assisted her as she got off the scooter. The three then strolled into the green forest. They soon approached a bridge. The bridge was very wobbly, which freaked Brelyn out a little. Ben reassured her that she was safe and nothing was going to happen. Once across, Ben and Mal grabbed Brelyn's hands. "Now, we're gonna need you to close your eyes."

Brelyn looked at both of them in confusion. "Don't worry," Mal responded. "I promise nothing bad will happen." Brelyn nodded as she closed her eyes. Mal and Ben guided Brelyn's steps as they walked further into the woods.

"Are we there yet?" Brelyn asked, finally speaking since they left.

"Almost," Mal replied.

They walked a little further before coming to a stop. Brelyn then felt Ben's hands on her shoulders as Mal hung onto her arms. "Now, open," Ben said. Brelyn opened her eyes and was faced with a beautiful, clear lake that had a gazebo right on top. "Hope you like picnics." Ben held out a picnic basket in his hand.

"Where did you..."

"Don't ask," Mal said.

The three of them walked down to the gazebo where Ben began setting up a picnic. Brelyn looked at the place in awe. She thought the forest was beautiful; the lake was even beautiful. Once Ben had the picnic set up, the three of them began enjoying their meal.

For the longest time, they all were quiet. Mal and Ben didn't necessarily know where to start. They kept on looking at each other for what to say. As for Brelyn, she was still looking around. her eyes could never stay in one spot.

"Are you okay?" Ben asked.

"Oh, um, yeah. I'm fine. It's just..." Mal and Ben began listening intently. "I've seen this place in my dreams."

Ben and Mal looked at each other then back at Brelyn. "In your dreams?" Mal questioned. Brelyn nodded. "You wanna explain? I mean, if it's not a problem, that is."

"It's not a problem at all," Brelyn replied. "I was started seeing this place in my dreams when I was around ten years old. In my dreams, where I was here, I would always be with my parents."

"Your parents?" Mal was in shock. Brelyn nodded. "What did they look like."

Brelyn shrugged her shoulders. "I never really remembered what they looked like in my dreams," she explained. "I feel like they either always changed or I just don't remember those parts of my dreams. They're never consistent."

"What were they usually like in your dreams?" asked Ben.

"From what I can remember, they were usually the nicest and loving people. There's not much I remember, but I do remember that they loved me, and I loved them. Sometimes I would be upset when I woke up because I just wanted to spend time with parents I never knew." Tears began forming in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she said. She got up from the picnic and sat at the edge of the gazebo. She needed some space for a second. She took off her shoes so she could place her foot in the water.

Mal and Ben got up and joined Brelyn at the edge of the gazebo. "Seems like you've always wanted to know what your parents were like?" Ben asked.

Brelyn nodded as she wiped tears from her eyes. "What foster kid doesn't want to know what their parents were like?"

Ben looked up to Mal. They stared at each other as if they were speaking telepathically. Mal nodded slowly. Ben got up and headed towards the picnic basket. "I think we might be able to help with that," Mal said.

Brelyn looked at Mal in confusion. "How?"

"Maybe this will do." Ben handed Brelyn something. It was a newspaper. "Read the main article."

Brelyn looked at the newspaper. The main news article was titled _A Princess Has Been Born._ She began to read it aloud. "Yesterday, King Ben of Auradon and Queen Mal of the Isle welcomed their baby girl to the world." Brelyn looked at the two royals in confusion before continuing. "The baby will be known as Princess... Brelyn of Auradon." Brelyn stopped reading. Ben and Mal looked at each other with fearful looks. They were not sure what exactly was going through their daughter's head. "It is said that the new princess had beautiful amethyst locks of hair," Brelyn read aloud through her cries. "And striking hazel eyes. She is definitely the daughter of Mal." She read the top of the newspaper. The date was dated the day after her birthday of the year she was born. Brelyn looked up to Mal then at Ben. "You... You guys are my parents? A-And I'm... a princess?"

Ben took a deep breath. "Yeah. Surprise?"

Brelyn cried into her hands. Mal, almost on impulse, brought Brelyn into a hug. She wrapped her arms around her daughter tightly. Mal believed Brelyn would be mad and pull away quickly, but to her surprise, Brelyn embraced her mother as well. It wasn't long before Mal started sobbing as well.

Ben couldn't help it. He let tears stream down his own face. He grabbed both of his girls and squeezed them tightly. For the first time in her life, Brelyn felt the parental love she had longed for so long. Brelyn bulled herself out when she remembered something. "But," she began, "why? Why did you have to give me up? I promise I won't get mad. I understand it must have been for a very good reason."

Ben handed her a second newspaper that was dated just about three months after she was born "Sources have found a threat that has been made against Auradon and the VKs King Ben invited all those years ago. In order to protect their [Mal and Jay] daughters, they have decided to give them up for adoption. The two infants, Princess Brelyn - who is three months - and Jacey - who is two weeks old - have been placed in an orphanage far from Auradon."

"We just wanted to protect you," Ben said.

"What about Elaina and Cayla? They weren't born yet."

"They were given up once they were born. Carlos and Jane brought Cayla to the orphanage themselves the day after she was born. However, Elaina was taken from Evie and Doug just hours after her birth by a caseworker," Mal explained.

"I'm going to assume it was very hard on Evie to have done that within hours," Brelyn said.

"She did." Mal nodded. "It took her almost a year for her to move on from it. I mean, she and Doug wanted a baby for so long, and then they had their child taken from them once they got the chance."

Brelyn nodded as she thought about how happy Elaina would be when she found out Evie and Doug were her parents. "Wait a minute," Brelyn said. "Because you're the daughter of Maleficent and you have magic, does that mean I inherited your magic as well?"

Mal nodded. "Fairy Godmother had told me that you just gained your magic. From what I've heard, you've been having a hard time controlling your powers."

"Well," Brelyn began. "I haven't had any magical surges that could potentially hurt anybody, but it does cause me a lot of stress."

"Does it scare you?"

"A little. I guess. Nothing like this has ever happened before, and I don't really know how to handle it."

Mal lied out her hands. "Place the back of your hands on my hands." Brelyn did just that. Suddenly, green and purple smoke began forming. Brelyn began to flinch, but Mal gave her a promising look that told her that everything would be fine. The two colors of smoke formed into a heart. Brelyn couldn't help but smile. "Magic is a beautiful thing," Mal explained. "As long as you trust and believe in yourself, everything will be fine in the end."

Brelyn smiled. "Thank you," she said. She suddenly pulled both Mal and Ben into a hug. They both were surprised but didn't reject it. "I never want to let go," she whispered.

"Neither do we," Ben told her.

The three of them sat at the edge of the gazebo with their feet in the water. Their past was completely behind them because they were together: they were a family.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So originally posted this story on Wattpad in 2017, just a couple months after Descendants 2 came out. I wasn't the best at writing back then, but I hope you all like this story as much as some people have on the other site! Thank you!


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